Shimla, Sep 3 (PTI) The Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly on Thursday passed the Himachal Pradesh Panchayati Raj (Second Amendment) Bill, 2026, expanding the definition of ‘family’ for the purpose of disqualification from contesting panchayat elections or holding a panchayat office if a member of the family encroaches on government, municipal, panchayat, cooperative society or village common land.
The amended bill seeks to disqualify not only the individual who encroaches but also the family members who benefit from such encroachment, for six years from the date of eviction or the removal of the encroachment.
Under the amendment, the encroacher’s family includes the paternal grandfather, paternal grandmother, father, mother, spouse (husband or wife), son, unmarried daughter, and even daughter-in-law, which invited opposition from the BJP.
BJP MLA Randhir Sharma termed the move undemocratic and said that the government is barring women from contesting elections even if they have no connection to the encroachment.
He asked why a daughter-in-law should be held responsible if her in-laws have committed the encroachment.
Leader of the Opposition Jairam Thakur remarked that the government has created a situation where every daughter will have to ascertain whether the household she is marrying into is involved in any encroachment. He alleged that this could deprive a woman of her right to contest elections even if she has no link to the encroachment.
They alleged that this provision was introduced to prevent the daughter-in-law of a prominent leader from contesting the election. They demanded that the government withdraw the bill, stating that the government should not act merely on the chief minister’s insistence.
Rural Development Minister Anirudh Singh said that the opposition must clarify whether it stands with encroachers or against them.
He said that the government had encountered several cases where individuals were barred from contesting elections due to encroachment but wished to field their daughters-in-law instead.
If a daughter-in-law is a legal heir to her in-laws’ property, she also shares responsibility for the assets and liabilities, and therefore, she has been included in the definition of ‘family’.
The rural development minister clarified that this law was not framed with any specific individual in mind and the decision was taken after seeking legal opinion.
Earlier, the governor had promulgated the Panchayati Raj Amendment Ordinance on May 6, under Article 213 of the Constitution, as the legislative assembly was not in session. PTI BPL AMJ AMJ
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