By Shishir Sinha
Finance and Corporate Affairs Ministries are likely to move four key Bills 鈥 Income Tax Bill, Insurance Bill, Bill for Banning of Unregulated Leding Activities and Insolvency & Bankruptcy Code Amendment Bill 鈥 in the upcoming Monsoon Session of Parliament, a top government official told businessline. The session is beginning on July 21 and will continue till August 21.
The Select Committee has given its recommendations on the Income Tax Bill, which was introduced during the Budget Session. Based on the recommendations, the Bill will be redrafted and moved again. Other three bills are likely to be introduced afresh during the session.
鈥淭he Select Committee report will be presented to the Speaker. Once that is done, then we will move forward on it (Income Tax Bill),鈥 the official said. The current Income-tax Act has been amended nearly 65 times with more than 4,000 amendments. The new Bill aims to simplify language, eliminate redundancy, streamline procedures and processes to enhance the taxpayer experience. It is expected to be implemented from April 1, 2026.
Insurance Bill
The second important Bill aims to amend the Insurance Act 1938 which will facilitate raising FDI limit to 100 per cent from 74 per cent, as announced in the FY26 Budget. The official quoted above said that the bill will have enough safeguards. 鈥淚f your worry is about the premiums which Indians pay, will somebody take it away. No, they will remain here,鈥 the official said. The current guardrails and conditionalities associated with foreign investment will be reviewed and simplified.
The framework of the Bill is based on a proposal mooted by the Financial Services Department in November, last year. The amendments are proposed to ensure 鈥渁ccessibility and affordability of insurance to citizens, foster expansion and development of the insurance industry and streamline business processes鈥.
Proposed amendments are expected to lay down the framework for composite licenses, allowing insurers to offer multiple categories of insurance 鈥 life, health and general 鈥 under a single license. This is expected to enhance operational flexibility, streamline regulatory processes and foster innovation. This is one key initiative for enhancing insurance penetration to achieve goal of 鈥業nsurance for All by 2047.鈥
Unregulated lenders
The Bill to ban Unregulated Lending Activity, either through physical or digital means, prescribes jail term up to seven years and fine up to 鈧1 crore. Also, in case of harassment of any person by unregulated lenders, including those giving loan through digital means, can lead to a jail term up to 10 years and penalty of up to double the amount.
The Bill also proposes that investigations can be transferred to the CBI if the lender, borrower, or properties are located across multiple States or Union Territories, or if the total amount involved is large enough to significantly impact public interest. It seeks to empower the Centre to amend the First Schedule in consultation with regulators to exclude any regulated lending activity covered by the mentioned legislations.
IBC Amendment
According to the official, the Corporate Affairs Ministry is likely to move a bill to amend IBC to clarify that prior permission of the Competition Commission of India (CCI) is not required for submitting bids under the corporate insolvency resolution process.
Published on July 7, 2025