West Bengal government waiting for return of bill on chitfunds

KOLKATA: The West Bengal government today said it was waiting for the return of a bill on curbing operations by chitfund companies sent for presidential assent by the previous Left Front government, for making it stronger incorporating several changes.

"A strong legislation is required immediately to control the operations of chit fund companies and prevent recurrence of a situation created by the Saradha Group," Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said here.

"We are waiting for the return of the bill. There is a procedure, but we are yet to get any information from the Raj Bhavan," she said.

She was referring to the West Bengal Protection of Depositors' Interest in Financial Institution Bill, which was passed unanimously in the Assembly in 2009 and sent for the president's assent.

Contacted Raj Bhavan sources told PTI that such a bill was yet to be received from the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Earlier, the chief minister had said on April 22 that she had requested President Pranab Mukherjee to see that the bill passed by previous Left Front government seeking to restrict chitfund operations, was returned to enable the state government to incorporate more stringent provisions to deal with such illegal activities.

Meanwhile, a special session of the Assembly has been convened on April 29.

"A special session has been summoned by the Governor on April 29. Of course, the House will sit with an eye to passing a new law (against the chitfunds)," Speaker Biman Banerjee told PTI.

To a question, he said that a new bill could be moved by withdrawing the earlier one passed in the House during the Left Front regime by adopting a motion.

Asked how many days the session would last, the Speaker said, "It will depend on the volume of business that the government has."

He said that the business advisory committee of the House would meet tomorrow.