The Lok Sabha on Monday, December 13 passed the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) (Amendment) Bill, 2021 to rectify the errors in the NDPS (Amendment) Act.
The bill was passed by voice vote, some of the amendments introduced by the opposition were rejected by the House.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the retrospective provisions made in the bill were not “original” in nature.
Some opposition members had raised concerns that “the provision to enforce the law with retrospective effect is violative of Article 20(1) of the Constitution.”
However, Sitharaman said that as per the opinion of the Solicitor General, the amendment was not genuine but was explicit in nature and could have been allowed.
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