The Land Reforms Bill, 2023, which forbids the ownership of more than 60 bighas of land was placed in the Jatiya Sangsad with a view to establish accountability in the land reforms.
Land Minister Saifuzzaman Chowhdury on Monday placed the bill in the House with Speaker Dr Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury in the chair.
Piloting the bill, the minister said the draft of the act will establish transparency and accountability in share cropping system and also protect the land owners and the share cropper also. The government will buy the extra land if a person owns more than 60 bighas.
This provision will not apply to cooperative societies, owners of tea gardens, coffee, rubber, and fruit orchards, or land producing raw materials for industrial factories. Landowners of industrial and agro-processing businesses with an export focus, waqfs, and religious trusts, he claimed, will also be exempt from this provision.
"If an individual possesses over 60 bighas of land (33 shotok per bigha), the
government will be able to acquire the additional land," he explained. In addition, breaking the law regarding land will result in a Taka 1 lakh fine, a month in jail, or both.
The finance minister urged the House to send the bill to the concerned parliamentary standing committee for providing within a week.