'Don't bypass the Cabinet': President to govt on ordinance sent to him

New Delhi: President Pranab Mukherjee on Tuesday signed an ordinance amending the Enemy Property Act, but issued a note of caution to the government.

According to NDTV, the President was upset that the ordinance was not routed through the Cabinet before being sent to him. This is the first time in the history of independent India that an ordinance has been sent to the President without the cabinet first clearing it.

Pranab Mukherjee told the government that he was signing the ordinance in the interest of public good though the Cabinet had been bypassed.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi used Rule 12 of business and transactions to send to the President the ordinance, which amends the Enemy Property Act, a 48-year-old law to guard against claims of succession or transfer of properties left by people who migrated to Pakistan or China after wars, said the report.

The Lok Sabha had passed a bill to amend the act earlier this year, but opposition parties want it reviewed and have stalled it in the Rajya Sabha, where the government is in a minority. Hence, the only option left for the government was to keep issuing ordinance after ordinance.

The government is in a hurry as the earlier ordinance lapses this Sunday, said the report.