Amid the Opposition din over Lalitgate and Vyapam, the only work that was done in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday was approving an extension till August 3 for submission of the joint House panel report on the controversial land Bill.

The motion seeking extension of time was moved by SS Ahluwalia, head of the joint panel, and was adopted by a voice vote.

The committee, which was mandated to submit its report on the first day of the Monsoon session after seeking views of all stakeholders, sought time “up to the first day of the third week of the current session of Parliament”. It wanted time to seek more views, it had said earlier.

The panel had earlier written to the Speaker seeking an extension till July 27 to submit its report. But on July 19, Ahluwalia sought time till August 3 to submit a report on the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Second Amendment) Bill, 2015.

If the joint panel does not submit the report during the Monsoon Session, the government may have to re-promulgate the ordinance for the fourth time, as it has a life span of six months to get Parliamentary endorsement.

Passage of the controversial Land Bill has become a challenge for the NDA government, as the Opposition Congress is unwilling to ease its stance on it. Without Congress support it will be difficult for the Bill to sail through in the Rajya Sabha, where the ruling BJP is in a minority.

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