PRESS
RELEASE
To
Chief
Reporter/ News Editor,
Subject: Re.
Clarification
issued by Secretary, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MHUA) on July 23,
2019 at a hurriedly called press conference to address fears that draft Model
Tenancy Act, 2019 would be watered down like the RERA
The Secretary, Shri D. S. Mishra said “We have MoUs
signed from PMAY-U with all the States, including West Bengal, that when the
Centre comes up with the Model Tenancy Act, the States will either enact the
same Act or align it with their existing laws,” (Business Line 23.07.2019).
It may be recalled that in December,
2005 the then Prime Minister had launched the flagship scheme JNNURM. It was the
biggest funded urban renewal mission ever undertaken in any country so far. To
receive funds under JNNURM the states and civic agencies had to sign a MoA
clearly committing that rental law reform would be undertaken in a time bound
fashion.
A
report by PIL Watch Group (of which the undersigned is one of the two authors)
found that central assistance was given to States and Union Territories which
had not even undertaken the mandatory Rent Control Law reform. For example in the
case of Gujarat it was shown (at the then JNNURM website) that it had undertaken
the rental law reform whereas all it had done was to extend the date of the existing archaic Rent Act of 1947 for another ten years i.e. till 2021. A classic case of
outright deception!
For
full PILWG report visit: http://pilwatchgroup.blogspot.com/2014/05/jnnurn-rent-control-law-reform-and-lies.html
Thus
there is no reason to believe that because states sign MoUs with the Central
Govt. to get benefits/subsidy under PMAY-U,
the rental law reform would come about.
Secondly,
even in the press conference the MHUA failed to clarify if the existing
tenancies under various state rent control acts will be covered under MTA to be
enacted by the States.
Shobha Aggarwal
President,
Committee
for the Repeal of Delhi Rent Control Act
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