Lok Sabha Clears Repealing And Amending Bill 2025

Why in the News?

The Lok Sabha passed the Repealing and Amending Bill, 2025, aiming to repeal obsolete colonial-era and redundant laws and amend select statutes to simplify legal processes, reduce compliance burdens, and advance the government’s vision of minimum government, maximum governance. This legislative reform also touches on aspects of environmental democracy and jurisprudence.

Key Provisions Of The Repealing And Amending Bill, 2025:

• The Bill provides for the repeal of 71 Acts that have become obsolete, redundant, or irrelevant over time.
• Major repealed laws include the Indian Tramways Act, 1886, Levy Sugar Price Equalisation Fund Act, 1976, and the BPCL Conditions of Service Act, 1988.
• Of the 71 Acts, 65 are Amendment Acts whose changes are already incorporated into principal laws, making their continuation unnecessary.
• The Bill also amends four Acts to remove inconsistencies and update legal terminology.
• Amendments to the General Clauses Act, 1897 and the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 modernise references related to registered posts.
• Changes to the Indian Succession Act, 1925 remove mandatory court validation of wills in certain cases, easing procedural hurdles.
• A drafting error in the Disaster Management Act, 2005 is corrected through this Bill.

Government’s Rationale And Reform Agenda

• The Union government described the Bill as part of a broader effort to clean up the statute book.
• Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal stated that laws losing relevance must be repealed to improve legal clarity and accessibility.
• Since May 2014, the government has repealed 1,577 obsolete laws, of which 1,562 were fully repealed and 15 re-enacted.
• Over the last 11 years, more than 40,000 compliance requirements have been reduced.
• These reforms aim to promote ease of doing business and ease of living for citizens, while also considering environmental concerns such as the need for environmental clearances and impact assessments.
• The Bill reflects the governance philosophy of Reform, Perform, and Transform, aligned with the vision of Viksit Bharat.
• The government emphasised moving away from a colonial legal mindset towards a citizen-centric legal framework, which includes aspects of environmental democracy and jurisprudence.