The Cabinet on Sunday gave its final approval to the draft of Village Court (Amendment) Act, 2024 enhancing the authority of village courts to fine Tk 3 lakh, raising the amount from existing Tk 75,000.
The approval was given from the weekly Cabinet meeting with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair at the Prime Ministers Office in Dhaka.
While briefing after the meeting at Secretariat, Cabinet Secretary Md Mahbub Hossain told that the government gave the final approval to the draft act last year.
There is an obligation to take approval from the new Cabinet as it was not tabled in the last parliament, he said, adding now the current Cabinet gave the final approval.
He said the government is set to enhance the authority of village courts, enabling them to raise fines from Tk 75,000 to Tk 3 lakh.
He said a village court comprises five members, including the union parishad chairman. In some cases, the court cannot function if any member remains absent.
In this situation, the absent member would get seven days to be present in the meeting. If the member cannot be present, then the chairman has the power to give one additional vote, he added.
The Cabinet Secretary said complication is being created if the person representing one party of a case dies. From now on, successor of the deceased can be the party in the case concerned.
The meeting has also relieved the Ministry of Agriculture from the charge of preparing a draft policy on processing of agro-products as the Ministry of Industry already has a similar guideline titled as Agro and Food Processing Industry Improvement Guideline.
In January 2023, the Cabinet asked the Ministry of Agriculture to prepare a new guideline when giving its clearance to the draft of "National Agro-Marketing Policy.
