Ghulam Nabi Azad hopes for support of all parties against government's Real Estate Bill

Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad on Tuesday said he looks forward to the support of all political parties in opposing the NDA Government's Real Estate Bill.

"Just like all political parties are together on the Land Acquisition Bill except the BJP, I hope all parties will oppose the Real Estate Bill too," said Azad.

"They have changed the whole image of it. They have changed the meaning of carpet area. Earlier, no one could make changes after the project had passed, but now they can. Earlier, projects were not extended from the due date, but now they can take extensions," he added.

The NDA Government, which does not have a majority in the Rajya Sabha, was earlier last week forced to defer the tabling of the Bill after the opposition insisted on it being referred to a Select Committee of Parliament.

The Rajya Sabha is likely to see a heated debate over the Real Estate Regulatory Authority Bill, as the Congress has said that it is anti-home buyer and pro builder.

On the other hand, the government has been insisting that the bill is aimed to regulate and promote real estate sector and protect the interest of consumers.

The government's argument is that the standing committee had representation from all political parties, and that it went ahead with amendments after "exhaustive consultations" with all stakeholders.

Last week, Rahul Gandhi met organisations representing home-buyers to discuss concerns about a new real estate bill proposed by the government. He has called the bill anti-consumers as it allegedly dilutes penalties for late delivery of homes. The bill allegedly does not safeguard against money being diverted from one project to another.

The Bill is crucial as it would help the ruling BJP fulfil its election promise of 'Housing for All' by 2022.