Bill Summary

The Madhya Pradesh Municipalities Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2023

• The Madhya Pradesh Municipalities (Amendment) Bill, 2023 was introduced on March 13, 2023.   It amends the: (i) Madhya Pradesh Municipal Corporation Act, 1956 (Corporation Act) and the (ii) Madhya Pradesh Municipalities Act, 1961 (Municipalities Act).  The two Acts provide for setting up municipal corporations and municipalities in the state, respectively.

• Penalty for construction/removal of toilets: The Corporation Act and the Municipalities Act empower the municipal bodies to direct the owner or occupier of any building to construct or remove drains, small outdoor toilets, latrines, or urinals.  Under both the Acts, any occupier who fails to carry out the specified construction/removal work may be fined up to Rs 1,000, or may be imprisoned for up to three months in case of non-payment of fine.  The Bill amends both Acts to: (i) remove the imprisonment, (ii) increase the maximum fine to Rs 5,000, and (iii) introduce a fine of up to Rs 200 per day for continued non-payment of fine.

• Removal of certain prohibitions: Both Acts restrict certain activities in the respective municipal areas.  Begging for alms in a municipal area is prohibited under these Acts.  Similarly, both Acts empower the municipal bodies to prohibit keeping of brothel and residence of persons practicing prostitution in any specified part within the respective municipal area.  The Bill removes these restrictions regarding begging and prostitution.  The Corporation Act empowers the Commissioner of a Municipal Corporation to prescribe routes for removal of corpses to burial or burning places.  The Act makes following acts in this regard punishable: (i) carrying corpse along prohibited routes, (ii) carrying corpses in a manner likely to cause annoyance to public.  The Bill removes the power to prescribe routes for corpses and related offences.