Bengal Guv refers anti-rape Bill passed by assembly to Prez for consideration

    Kolkata, Sep 6 (PTI) West Bengal Governor C V Ananda Bose on Friday referred the anti-rape Bill passed by the assembly to President Droupadi Murmu for her consideration, a Raj Bhavan official said.
    Bose, who was handed over the technical report of the bill by Chief Secretary Manoj Pant earlier in the day, referred the Bill to Murmu after going through it, he said.
    "Governor refers the 'Aparajita Bill' to President Droupadi Murmu for consideration. He referred it after receiving the mandatory technical report from the state government," the official told PTI.
    Bose had on Thursday criticised the Mamata Banerjee administration for "failing to send" the technical report along with the Bill, which is necessary for giving assent to it.
    The Raj Bhavan has also expressed its displeasure over the “failure” of the assembly and secretariat in providing the text of the debates and its translation as required under the rules, the official said.
    "Now, the 'Aparajita’ Bill will join the lot of similar other Bills pending with the President from Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Arunachal Pradesh," he said.
    The governor "pointed out the omissions and commissions in the hurriedly passed Bill", he said, adding, Bose has "warned" the state government not to "act in haste and repent at leisure".
    Bose has also pointed out the “glaring defects and lapses” in the Bill and advised the state govt "to do their homework instead of going in for knee-jerk responses", the official said.
    The official also pointed out that Bose has emphasised that it was the duty of the administration to wipe the tears of the bereaved mother who lost her dear daughter, referring to the young doctor who was allegedly raped and murdered at RG Kar hospital last month.
    "The governor said that people cannot wait till the Bill is implemented. They want justice and justice should be given to them within the framework of the existing law. The (state) government should act effectively, people should get justice," he added.
    The West Bengal assembly had on September 3 unanimously passed the 'Aparajita Woman and Child (West Bengal Criminal Laws and Amendment) Bill 2024' that seeks capital punishment for rape convicts if their actions result in the victim's death or leave her in a vegetative state, and life sentence without parole for other perpetrators.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)