KATHMANDU, Aug 4: Representatives of local governments have expressed strong outrage over the Land Bill currently under discussion at the Federal Parliament’s Agriculture, Cooperatives, and Natural Resources Committee.
They argue that the bill contradicts the Constitution, existing laws, and legal frameworks. “What if local governments refuse to implement this land bill introduced by the federal government?” they questioned, “Because the Constitution has explicitly granted the power of implementation concerning land matters to local governments.”
On August 1, the committee held a discussion with officials from the National Association of Rural Municipalities and the Municipal Association of Nepal regarding the bill. The meeting was attended by Bhim Dhungana, President of the Municipal Association; Laxmi Pandey, President of the Rural Municipalities Association; and advisor Lekhnath Neupane, among others.
During the discussion, participants claimed that the bill contradicts the Constitution of Nepal, the Local Government Operations Act, 2074 (2017), and the Inter-Governmental Fiscal Arrangement Act, 2077 (2020). They emphasized that the Constitution grants 22 exclusive powers to local governments.
They accused the federal government of gradually eroding these rights. “You haven’t treated local governments as actual governments,” said Dhungana, “You’ve treated them like NGOs and that’s the problem.”
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Similarly, Neupane, advisor to the Rural Municipalities Association, urged the federal government not to rush the Land Bill. He warned that hasty legislation could enable misuse of public land, and that any bill facilitating such misuse should be scrapped altogether.
The committee’s next meeting is scheduled for Sunday, where representatives from other concerned bodies, including the Ministry of Forests, will be invited for further discussion, according to committee member Pratima Gautam.
The bill titled “An Act to Amend Some Nepal Land Laws, 2082” was tabled in the House of Representatives on 5 May 2025. At the request of the Nepali Congress, it was forwarded to the committee for clause-wise deliberation on July 24.
The Janata Samajbadi Party (JSP) Nepal has registered 10 proposed amendments to the bill. Key Nepali Congress leaders, including general secretaries Gagan Thapa and Bishwo Prakash Sharma, have also filed amendment proposals. One contentious provision allows land exceeding ceiling limits to be sold as plots or apartment units.
This particular clause is at the core of Congress' objections. They demand mandatory revisions, arguing that failure to amend it could cause significant national damage. Other parties, including JSP Nepal, share this concern.
Thapa and Sharma’s amendment seeks to prohibit the use of land obtained under ceiling exemptions for commercial real estate purposes. They argue that land exempted for other purposes should not be allowed for plotting or sale.
Another proposed amendment suggests that while issuing land ownership certificates (Lalpurja) to squatters, authorities must verify whether they already own a house or plot in urban areas.
It also states that land designated as forest area, even if currently unused, must remain categorized as forest and cannot be used to issue land ownership certificates.
The current bill allows landless squatters who have been residing in one place for over 10 years to be granted land ownership certificates.
Lawmakers have proposed an amendment that land previously approved for agriculture, industrial, or other uses should not be used for housing projects, apartment construction, or property sales.
Thapa and Sharma's proposal further argues that land taken for a specific purpose must not be repurposed, and this restriction should be explicitly written into the law.
While the bill currently allows land exempted for agriculture, industrial, institutional, educational, or health purposes to be converted into real estate with approval, the Congress wants this clause repealed or heavily restricted.
Another point of contention is the bill’s categorization of “landless Dalits” and “landless” under separate headings. Congress proposes merging these into a single category and creating a separate classification for informal settlers.
Over 1.5 million households have submitted applications to the Landless Commission seeking land ownership certificates. This has prompted the CPN-UML to push for swift passage of the bill, to ensure land ownership certificate distribution to landless Dalits, the landless in general, informal settlers, and squatter families.
