The Repealing and Amending Bill, 2025, piloted by Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal in the Rajya Sabha, was passed by a voice vote. The Lok Sabha had approved the Bill a day earlier.
Introducing the Bill, Meghwal said the objective was to repeal laws that had outlived their utility, correct drafting mistakes that had crept in over time, and address discriminatory provisions in certain statutes. The broader aim, he said, was to improve “ease of living” alongside the government’s focus on ease of doing business.
“If a law has become irrelevant or obsolete, the government will not hesitate to bring legislation to repeal it,” the minister told the House.
Clearing obsolete laws, fixing inconsistencies
The Bill proposes repealing 71 Acts, some of which date back to the colonial era. These include the Indian Tramways Act, 1886; the Levy Sugar Price Equalisation Fund Act, 1976; and the Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (Determination of Conditions of Service of Employees) Act, 1988.
In addition, four laws are set to be amended. These include the General Clauses Act, 1897, and the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, where outdated terminology—such as references to registered posts—is proposed to be updated. Amendments have also been proposed to the Indian Succession Act, 1925, to remove the requirement of mandatory court validation of wills in certain cases, and to the Disaster Management Act, 2005, to correct a drafting error.
Meghwal pointed out that since 2014, the government has repealed or amended 1,577 old laws, of which 1,562 have been repealed outright and 15 re-enacted in updated form.
Debate over intent and impact
During the discussion, Meghwal cited provisions under the Indian Succession Act to argue that some laws still carried discriminatory elements. He noted that wills made by Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs, Jains and Parsis in the former Madras, Bombay and Calcutta presidencies required probate, while similar requirements did not apply to Muslims.
“Any discrimination on the basis of religion, caste or sex is prohibited by the Constitution,” he said, adding that the reforms were part of a broader effort to move away from a colonial legal mindset.
However, not all members agreed with the government’s framing. Congress MP Vivek K Tankha questioned the claim that the exercise amounted to decolonisation of the legal system, alleging that the Bill was largely a technical exercise that had not sufficiently assessed its real-world impact on citizens.
From the ruling side, BJP MP Subhash Barala said outdated laws had long caused hardship to people and that their removal would ease unnecessary procedural hurdles. Trinamool Congress MP Sushmita Dev said the legislation presented an opportunity for the government to reassess provisions that might undermine civil liberties, democratic values and dissent.
Members from several parties, including the DMK, YSRCP, BJD, AIADMK, CPI(M), IUML, BSP, AAP, BJP and JMM, also took part in the discussion, reflecting broad political engagement with the exercise of pruning India’s statute books.
With the Bill now passed by both Houses, it will move forward for presidential assent, marking another step in the government’s ongoing effort to streamline the legal framework and remove laws that no longer serve contemporary needs.