After UP & Hry, MP to have property damage recovery law

Bhopal: The Madhya Pradesh cabinet on Thursday approved a bill providing for recovery of losses from people and organizations responsible for damaging public and private property during protests.

Two other BJP-ruled states, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, have already enacted similar laws.

As per the MP bill, during a trial, once the prosecution succeeds in proving that public property was damaged in direct actions called by an organization in which the accused also participated, the court can draw a presumption that the accused is guilty of destroying public property too. The onus of proving innocence will be on him or her from this stage of trial onwards, officials said.

It will be open for accused to rebut such presumption, the bill stated.

Abetment of offence shall carry the same penalty as the main offence.

The Madhya Pradesh Damage to Public and Private Property Recovery Bill, 2021 was approved at a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan here, Home Minister Narottam Mishra told reporters.

The bill focuses on those indulging in communal riots, hartals (general strikes), protests and those who take out rallies during which property is damaged, and such accused will be tried before criminal tribunals, he said.

The bill is expected to be tabled during the winter session of the state Assembly which will start on December 20.

Under the UP law, Claim Tribunals set up under the Act are supposed to decide matters in one year, while the MP bill reduces this time to three months, an official said.