Estimated value of 'enemy properties' stands at Rs 1 trillion: Govt

The value of 'enemy properties', once owned by those who had migrated to Pakistan and China decades ago, is estimated to be about Rs one trillion, Union Minister G Kishan Reddy said on Tuesday.

Reddy said as on date, shares of 302 companies and 12,426 immovable enemy properties are vested in the Custodian of Enemy Property for India (CEPI).

The value of such properties has been estimated at about Rs one trillion, he said in a written reply in Lok Sabha.

The enemy property refers to any property belonging to, held or managed on behalf of an enemy, an enemy subject or an enemy firm.

The government has vested these properties in the Custodian of Enemy Property for India, an office instituted under the central government.

After the India-China war of 1962 and Indo-Pakistan war of 1965, the Enemy Property Act was enacted in 1968, which regulates such properties and lists the custodian's powers.

The minister said vesting of an enemy property is an ongoing process as new properties are taken up for vesting after their identification, and the properties so vested are taken up for disposal thereafter.

The disposal is subject to market processes and judicial interventions. Therefore, no time limit has been fixed for disposal of enemy properties, he said.

Reddy said the central government has laid down detailed procedure for sale of enemy shares vide an order dated February 18, 2019.

Further, the government vide orders dated March 21, 2018, March 8, 2019 and January 22, 2020 laid down the detailed procedures for disposal of immovable enemy properties vested in the Custodian of Enemy Property for India, he added.