Jallianwala Bagh Trust Bill introduced in Lok Sabha

New Delhi, Nov 23 (UNI) The Jallianwala Bagh National Memorial (Amendment) Bill 2006, introduced in the Lok Sabha today, provides for filling the vacancies caused by the passing of the life trustees of the memorial.

The Bill, introduced by Union Tourism Minister Ambika Soni in the House, seeks to amend the Jallianwala Bagh National Memorial Act 1951, which was enacted to provide for the erection and management of the national memorial to rekindle the memory of those killed in April 13, 1919 incident of Amritsar.

The objective of the said Act was to place the then trust on a permanent basis, to establish a body corporate to be known as the Trustees of the Jallianwala Bagh National Memorial and to transfer to that body all the property and funds and to confer upon that body all necessary powers for carrying out the objectivess of the Trust.

The trust provides for three trustees appointed for life. But they are no more and the Government cannot appoint trustees in their place without making necessary amendments in the said Act. Hence, the new Bill to make the trust functional.

The new Bill also seeks to provide for certification and auditing of the accounts of the trust by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India and laying it before each House of Parliament.

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