Cabinet Approves Amendments To Bill On Money Laundering

The Cabinet has approved the amendments to some of the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Bill, proposed by a select committee, for placing in the current session of Parliament.

Announcing the Cabinet decision today, Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Pramod Mahajan said the Bill providing for state financing of elections will also be introduced in the present session.

The passage of the Prevention of Money Laundering Bill has become important as the government is concerned about the increasing funding of terrorism through drug money and other sources of black money. The long delayed Bill was supposed to be passed along with its twin, the Foreign Exchange Management Act (Fema), for replacing the repealed Foreign Exchange Regulation Act (Fera).

The Prevention of Money Laundering Bill provides for criminal prosecution for wilful violation of its provisions unlike the Fema which has provisions only for fines and other punishments prescribed under the Civil Procedure Code. The Bill was introduced in the 12th Lok Sabha on August 4, 1998, and was eventually passed by the current Lok Sabha in December 1999. The Bill was referred to a select committee by the Rajya Sabha.

The Cabinet meeting presided over by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee also approved the Election and Other Related Laws Amendment Bill, 2001, for state funding of elections based on the Indrajit Gupta committee.

Mahajan said the committee report was considered by a group of ministers which has finalised the legislation but declined to give any further details about the measure. The Gupta committee had recommended that only recognised national or state parties should get state funding in kind.