E-Paper
Budget session: Himachal assembly passes RERA amendment bill without changes
So now the Himachal Pradesh legislative assembly again has given a nod to the bill seeking to make amendments to the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016.
Despite the objection of governor Shiv Pratap Shukla, the Himachal Pradesh assembly on Monday again passed the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Himachal Pradesh Amendment Bill, 2025, without changes with voice vote while the opposition remained silent.
So now the Himachal Pradesh legislative assembly again has given a nod to the bill seeking to make amendments to the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016.
The amendment bill was introduced in the House by minister of town and country planning Rajesh Dharmani, replacing the chief justice of the high court of Himachal Pradesh with the chief secretary as the chairperson of the Real Estate Regulatory Authority Selection Committee. The governor had sent the bill back for reconsideration as it was “not nayasangat” (not justified).
As per the amendments proposed by the government, the chairperson and members will be appointed by the state government based on recommendations of a three-member selection committee comprising the chief secretary as chairperson, the housing department secretary as member-convener, and the law secretary as member.
The bill in its statement of the objective states, the Real Estate Regulatory Authority is primarily an administrative and regulatory body requiring expertise in administration, housing, law, and related fields, which the chief secretary, or any other officer in the rank of secretary, adequately possesses. “This change respects the principle of separation of powers by avoiding judicial involvement in executive appointments, thereby, preventing potential conflicts of interest. An executive-led committee will ensure a fair, merit-based selection process and improve operational efficiency by facilitating timely appointments,” it added.
The amendment proposes to prescribe a fixed four years, non-renewable tenure for the chairperson and members of the Himachal Pradesh Real Estate Regulatory Authority.
The bill also provides that in case chief secretary is the applicants for the post of chairperson or member RERA or otherwise unable of the selection committee due to conflict of interest or any other reason to serve as the chairperson the state govt shall nominate additional chief secretary or any other officer in the rank of secretary of the state govt having adequate administrative experience to act as chairperson of the selection committee.
The government justified replacing chief justice with CS saying primarily RERA is administrative and regulatory body requiring expertise in administration, housing, law and related fields which CS or any other officer of the rank of the secretary adequately possesses.
The bill passed in winter session in December 2025 was introduced in backdrop of the selection committee last year headed by the Chief Justice of the Himachal Pradesh High Court did not consider former Himachal Chief Secretary Prabodh Saxena’s candidature for the post of RERA chairperson.
Saxena was considered as the front-runner for the position, which had fallen vacant in December last year following the retirement of then chairperson Shrikant Baldi.
Sources in the government had said that the selection committee for RERA post, headed by the Chief Justice of the HP High Court, and the Secretary (Urban Development) and the Secretary (Law) as its members, had raised objections to Saxena’s candidature in wake of a pending case.
Saxena faces a chargesheet in the infamous INX Media scam, in which former Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram and his son Karti are also named as accused. RD Dhiman was eventually appointed as the HP RERA chief in June, after the High Court pulled up the state government for delay.
House gives nod to increase tenure of mayor, dy mayor
Despite governor Shiv Pratap Shukla’s objection, the Himachal Pradesh assembly on Monday once again passed the Himachal Pradesh Municipal Corporation (Second Amendment) Bill, 2025, without the changes with voice note and opposition remaining silent.
Himachal Pradesh Municipal Corporation (Second Amendment) Bill, 2025, provides for the extension of the term of office of the mayor and deputy mayor of a Municipal Corporation to five years from 2.5 years tenure.
OPS will not be discontinued, says Sukhu
The Himachal Pradesh assembly saw heated discussion on Monday on the issue of the 16th Finance Commission’s decision to discontinue the Revenue Deficit Grant (RDG) for 17 states, including Himachal Pradesh.
During the discussion, chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu clarified that despite the economic challenges, the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) will not be discontinued in the state. Addressing the concerns of employees of HPSEBL, CM stated that the Electricity Board will not be privatised.
Initiating the discussion, Harshwardhan Chauhan stated that this issue is not about any one political party, but concerns the interests of the state’s 7.5 million citizens. He stated that Himachal’s share in central taxes had already declined after the discontinuation of GST compensation, and now the RDG will also be discontinued, further hampering the financial situation.
Leader of the Opposition Jai Ram Thakur, while participating in the discussion, targeted Sukhu while advising the government to stop “wasteful expenditure”, saying that if this is not done, employees’ salaries, allowances, pensions, and development works could be in jeopardy.
Theog MLA Kuldeep Rathore said that the RDG issue is not political, but rather a matter of state rights. He said that Himachal, which is recovering from natural disasters, cannot be compared to larger and resource-rich states. Meanwhile, BJP MLA Randhir Sharma accused the government of seeking political advantage from the RDG issue and urged it to first curb wasteful expenditure.
