logo
Lok Sabha Passes Anti-Doping (Amendment) Bill amid Opposition uproar

Lok Sabha Passes Anti-Doping (Amendment) Bill amid Opposition uproar

Time of India2 days ago
(You can now subscribe to our
(You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel
The Lok Sabha on Monday passed the National Anti-Doping (Amendment) Bill, 2025 amid protests and sloganeering by opposition members. The bill, which was introduced in the lower house on July 23, 2025, seeks to amend the existing National Anti-Doping Act, 2022.The legislation aims to strengthen the legal framework to combat doping in sports , aligning India's anti-doping regulations with international standards set by the UNESCO Convention against doping. Doping refers to the use of prohibited substances by athletes to artificially enhance their performance, a practice strictly banned under the Act.The original 2022 Act established the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) as the primary body responsible for implementing anti-doping rules, conducting testing, and enforcing penalties for violations. The Act also created the National Board for Anti-Doping in Sports, which supervises NADA's activities and advises the central government on policy matters.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

As Houses pass Sports Governance Bill, recalling BCCI opposition to RTI
As Houses pass Sports Governance Bill, recalling BCCI opposition to RTI

Indian Express

time19 minutes ago

  • Indian Express

As Houses pass Sports Governance Bill, recalling BCCI opposition to RTI

Rajya Sabha cleared the National Sports Governance Bill, 2025, on Tuesday, a day after its passage in Lok Sabha. Congress general secretary in charge of communications and Rajya Sabha MP Jairam Ramesh posted on X that the proposed law would 'result in the extreme centralisation of sports administration', and that 'BCCI will get most favoured treatment, not subject to any laws of the land like the RTI'. Under the provisions of the Bill, only a sports body that receives financial assistance from the state qualifies as a 'public authority' under the Right to Information Act, 2005. This effectively excludes the BCCI because it does not receive any direct financial aid from the government. The world's richest cricket board has over the years resisted being labelled as a public authority, despite recommendations from the Supreme Court, the Law Commission of India, and the Central Information Commission (CIC) to bring it in the ambit of India's transparency law. The proposed law will provide for the recognition of national sports bodies and regulate their functioning, and will align sports governance in India with the Olympic and Paralympic Charters, and with international best practices. The aim is to bring transparency and accountability in national sports federations, and open up hosting, collaboration, and funding opportunities. Since cricket will soon be an Olympic sport, it is necessary for the government to also bring BCCI under the proposed law. Clause 15(2) of the Bill that was introduced in Lok Sabha on July 23 said that a 'recognised sports organisation shall be considered a public authority under the Right to Information Act, 2005 with respect to the exercise of its functions, duties and powers'. This broad definition would include the BCCI — and make its entire functioning, from team selection to awarding contracts, open to public scrutiny. A subsequent amendment to the draft, however, said that a recognised sports organisation 'receiving grants or any other financial assistance' from the government shall be considered a public authority only 'with respect to utilisation of such grants or any other financial assistance'. This change, making government funding the sole criterion for a sports body to be considered a public authority, effectively put the BCCI out of the ambit of the RTI Act. The BCCI has for long argued that it is a private, autonomous body and not a 'public authority'. Indeed, it is not a sports federation under the Union Sports Ministry; legally, it is an autonomous charitable society registered under the Tamil Nadu Societies Registration Act, 1975. It does not take direct financial aid from the government. However, the BCCI's position that its financial and organisational independence of the state places it outside the government's regulatory framework for public bodies, has been contested by several judicial and quasi-judicial bodies. In its 275th Report (2018) titled 'Legal Framework: BCCI vis-à-vis Right to Information Act, 2005', the Law Commission of India recommended that BCCI should be classified as a public authority, pointing to the significant indirect financial assistance it had received from the government over the years. The Report noted that between 1997 and 2007, the board had received tax exemptions to the tune of more than Rs 2,100 crore due to its legal status as a charitable institution. The foregoing of this revenue amounted to indirect funding for the board, the Commission argued. The report also cited examples of state governments providing land to state cricket associations at highly subsidised rates; for example, in Himachal Pradesh, the land for a stadium was reportedly leased for Re 1 per month. The Supreme Court has noted that the BCCI performs 'public functions' that are akin to those of a state body. In a 2015 judgment, the court noted that it selects the teams that represent India, uses national colours and symbols, and exercises a monopoly over the sport with the 'tacit concurrence' of the government. A committee led by Justice R M Lodha, which was appointed by the Supreme Court in 2015 to recommend reforms in cricket, described the functioning of the BCCI as a 'closed door and back-room affair', and said that the 'legislature must seriously consider bringing BCCI within the purview of the RTI Act'. In 2016, the top court referred the matter to the Law Commission, observing that since the BCCI performs public functions, there is a clear need for transparency. The Law Commission submitted its report in 2018 (mentioned above), and that same year, the Central Information Commission (CIC) passed a landmark order declaring the BCCI as a 'public authority', and directing the board to set up a mechanism to handle queries under the RTI Act. The BCCI challenged the order in the Madras High Court, which stayed its implementation, leaving the matter in legal limbo. Bringing the BCCI under the RTI Act would mean that any citizen of India could seek information covering not just financial matters, but the entire gamut of the board's operations. The public would be able to demand information on the criteria for team selection, details of contracts awarded for broadcasting and infrastructure, the process of appointment of officials and coaches, and the minutes of BCCI meetings. This would force the board to justify its decisions to the public at large, and not just to its constituent members. In its 2015 judgment, the Supreme Court had held that even though the BCCI is not a state institution, it is amenable to writ jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution because it performs public functions. This means High Courts can intervene in the BCCI's affairs if its actions are found to be arbitrary or against the public interest.

Lok Sabha passes Mines and Minerals Amendment Bill
Lok Sabha passes Mines and Minerals Amendment Bill

Hindustan Times

timean hour ago

  • Hindustan Times

Lok Sabha passes Mines and Minerals Amendment Bill

The Lok Sabha passed the key amendments to the Mines and Minerals (Development & Regulation) Act on Tuesday. Lok Sabha passes Mines and Minerals Amendment Bill The amendments make way for widening the scope and territorial domain of the National Mineral Exploration Trust (NMET) to enable use of the funds accrued to the Trust within India, including the offshore areas, and outside India for the purposes of exploration and development of mines and minerals, ministry officials said. HT had reported on July 18, the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2025, which is expected to be tabled during the upcoming monsoon session of Parliament will help fast-track mining of critical minerals and operationalise the National Critical Mineral Mission (NCMM). The bill renames the NMET as the National Mineral Exploration and Development Trust to reflect its enlarged scope and increase the amount of payment to the Trust by the lessees from present 2% of the royalty payable to 3%. It enables the inclusion of any new mineral in a mining lease subject to the conditions prescribed by the Central Government. Further it also enables a one-time extension of the area under a mining lease or composite licence to include therein a contiguous area not exceeding 10% or 30% respectively, of the existing area under the lease or licence subject to such terms and conditions and additional payment as may be prescribed in rules by the Centre. 'This will promote optimal mining of deep-seated minerals which are locked up in contiguous areas and may not be economically viable to be extracted under a separate lease or licence,' officials said. 'The mining sector is a key driver of the nation's progress, with critical minerals playing an essential role in renewable energy, electric mobility, and cutting-edge technologies. However, India's domestic production of these critical minerals is limited, leaving us heavily dependent on imports,' said G Kishan Reddy, Union minister of coal and mines. 'From solar panels to wind turbines, agriculture to medical equipment, electronics to electricity, cell phones to aircraft, and defence to sports, critical minerals play a significant role across every sector,' he added.

Parliament clears Income Tax, Sports Bills amid Opp protest over roll revision, walkout
Parliament clears Income Tax, Sports Bills amid Opp protest over roll revision, walkout

Indian Express

time2 hours ago

  • Indian Express

Parliament clears Income Tax, Sports Bills amid Opp protest over roll revision, walkout

Parliament on Tuesday passed a new income tax Bill to replace the six-decade-old Income Tax Act, 1961, and the landmark National Sports Governance Bill which will transform India's sporting landscape and make decision-making athlete-centric, before it took a five-day break and will reconvene on August 18. The National Anti-Doping (Amendment) Bill, which reinforces NADA's autonomy as required by the World Anti-Doping Agency, was also passed by the Parliament. The two Bills now await the President's assent to be notified as Acts. Soon after Union Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya moved the Bills for consideration and passage in Rajya Sabha at 3 pm, there were protests from the Opposition over Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in poll-bound Bihar. The Opposition eventually staged a walkout led by Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge, who demanded a discussion on the SIR. During the discussion, Mandaviya said that since sports is 'a public movement', its three major stakeholders — athletes, federations, and government — needed to have mutual coordination and transparency to convert talent of the nation's sportspersons into medals. The legislation, he said, would provide opportunities for athletes from all backgrounds, particularly the tribal community and women. The Bill seeks to establish 'a transparent system in sports, ensure women's participation, strengthen federations, bring good governance, and safeguard the interests of athletes'. The new Bill mandates that at least four members of the Executive Council must be women. 'We aspire to be in the first five positions in terms of medals, and for that, good governance in the sports sector is necessary,' Mandaviya said. During the discussion, BJD MP Subhashish Khuntia raised concerns about the centralisation of sports governance due to the Bill. He also felt that the Bill did not have clarity on district and block-level development of athletes. 'The Bill should empower, not control,' he said. Mandaviya said that the government is only seeking to be a facilitator. 'In this Bill, we are bringing transparency, not control, not interference. The government doesn't want to control. We are being supporters and providers of a structure,' he said. Piloting the Income Tax Bill, 2025, in Rajya Sabha, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said it does not impose any new tax rate and only simplifies the language, which is required for understanding the complex income tax laws. The new Bill removes redundant provisions and archaic language and reduces the number of Sections from 819 in the Income Tax Act of 1961 to 536 and the number of chapters from 47 to 23. 'These changes are not merely superficial; they reflect a new, simplified approach to tax administration. This leaner and more focused law is designed to make it easy to read, understand and implement,' Sitharaman said while replying to a short debate in the absence of the Opposition. Along with the Income Tax Bill, 2025, the House also returned the Taxation Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2025, to LS that had passed these money Bills Monday. Soon after Rajya Sabha convened Tuesday, Deputy Chairman Harivansh said that the tax Bills had been included in the supplementary list of business and uploaded on the members' portal. Raising an objection, TMC MP Derek O' Brien said the important Bills, which had up to 500 amendments, were being listed at 11 am, when the House proceedings started for the day. He then raised the Opposition's demand for a discussion on the SIR but Harivansh said the Chair had already given a ruling on the matter. As the Opposition continued to raise its demand, the House was adjourned until 2 pm.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store