Taking part in the deliberations on Thursday, NC lawmaker Ramesh Lekhak demanded amendment to the bill saying that the definition of "the act of disappearance" under itself is erroneous. [break]
According to him, the state and non-state actors are treated equally in the bill. "The act of disappearance is established only if an organization or an individual doesn´t inform about the whereabouts of the arrested or abducted person to the authorities concerned within 24 hours. This is flawed. The act of abduction itself should be taken as ´the act of disappearance," he said.
Maoist lawmaker Ek Raj Bhandari called the bill biased. Bhandari argued that the bill is directionless while it should have focused particularly on the subject of those who were disappeared during the insurgency.
"Finding of whereabouts of those who were disappeared during the people´s war should be the top priority of the bill. But the bill is not in that direction," he said.
Bhandari also said the bill has failed to ensure the security of witnesses. "Similarly, the provision for seven years of jail term at the most for the culprit is not enough given the gravity of the crime," he said.
The parliamentarians can file amendments to the bill within 72 hours starting Thursday afternoon. After that the bill will be forwarded to the Statute Committee of the parliament for clause-wise discussion.
Meanwhile, the government also tabled a Bill on Truth and Reconciliation Commission in parliament for discussion on Thursday.
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