'Copy-paste of Gujarat model': Rajasthan's new property law draws fire over communal concerns

A controversial new legislation in Rajasthan, which empowers the government to freeze property transactions in ''disturbed” areas, has ignited a fierce political and legal debate, with critics warning it could deepen communal divides and enable arbitrary state control over urban neighbourhoods, through alleged ghettoisation of minority communities and marginalisation of socially backward groups.

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The Opposition also called it a blind imitation of the Gujarat model, where such a law prevails. Legal experts and rights activists have also spoken against it, even though the state's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government has tried to project that all is well.

What the Bill says

The Bill, officially called The Rajasthan Prohibition of Transfer of Immovable Property and Provision for Protection of Tenants from Eviction from Premises in Disturbed Areas Bill, 2026 or the Disturbed Areas Bill, gives power to the state government to designate any area as “disturbed” for up to three years if it believes the locality faces communal tension or an imminent threat of violence, riots, or public disorder.

Once such a notification is issued, all transfers of immovable property — including land, residential units, and commercial establishments — would require prior approval from top administrative officials of the area, such as the district magistrate (DM) or collector. This applies to transactions such as sales, gifts, exchanges, or leases.

Any transfer carried out without official clearance would be deemed illegal. The law also authorises the DMs or collectors to assess whether a proposed transaction is voluntary or a distress sale executed under coercion.

The Bill prescribes penalties for property transactions carried out without prior official approval and includes safeguards to protect tenants from unlawful eviction in notified areas. Violations are classified as cognizable and non-bailable offences, attracting imprisonment of three to five years along with a fine.

Controversy erupts

While the Bill is yet to receive the governor’s assent, a political controversy has already started snowballing. The Opposition Congress, which staged a walkout from the Assembly the day it was passed, called it divisive and questioned its alleged communal overtones.

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It also raised concerns about the administration's sweeping discretionary powers to classify areas as “disturbed", resulting in possible ghettoisation of communities. Though intended to prevent forced displacement, the policy is likely to institutionalise residential segregation and communal polarisation, the Opposition party feared.

Copy paste of Gujarat model: Congress

Labelling the Bill as “a copy-paste of the BJP’s Gujarat model”, Rajasthan Congress chief Govind Singh Dotasara alleged it is designed to create communal divide in a state known for peaceful co-existence. He also said that labelling areas as “disturbed” would only stigmatise neighbourhoods, ruin community relations and destroy the state’s ‘Ganga-Jamuni Tehzeeb’ (a syncretic culture found around the Ganga-Yamuna region in north India).

Rajasthan, in fact, has become the second state to take such a legal initiative after Gujarat. It mirrors the Gujarat Prohibition of Transfer of Immovable Property and Provision for Protection of Tenants from Eviction from Premises in Disturbed Areas Act, or just the Disturbed Areas Act, whose constitutional validity is being heard in the Gujarat High Court. Two petitions filed in January 2021 and August 2022 are pending before benches led by the chief justice.

In Gujarat, the law was enacted by the former Congress government of Chimanbhai Patel in 1991, and was intended to curb distress sales sparked by communal riots. In the state, where polarisation between the two communities is wide, the law has been weaponised to regulate purchases between communities in sensitive areas.

Also, the fact that the Rajasthan government’s stated objective of preventing “improper clustering” to “demographic imbalance” mimics the language of the Gujarat amendment raises constitutional and legal concerns.

Civil rights groups protest

Civil societies such as the PUCL (People’s Union for Civil Liberties) have demanded immediate withdrawal of the Bill, saying it would cause ghettoisation of minorities in urban areas.

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Kavita Srivastava, PUCL’s national president, told The Federal, “It is shocking that a bill which will promote ‘residential segregation by legal means’ is being made into law in the peaceful state of Rajasthan. The foundation of the two terms in the Bill, ‘improper clustering of persons’ and ‘demographic imbalance’, is based on the principle that people of only one community, one culture, one ethnicity, one religion and one kind of lifestyle need to live together.

“This is a clear challenge to Section 19 (1) (e), ‘to reside and settle in any part of the territory of India’. The ill effects of residential segregation will be generational. The minority community of the state will be hit by this law, making it impossible for them to buy or sell land. They will be out of the property market, causing an economic blow to the community.”

Talking about its impact on socially and economically marginalised communities, Dalit rights activist and PUCL’s Rajasthan chapter president, Bhanwar Meghwanshi, emphasised. “The Bill will have the most severe impact on socio-economically marginalised communities. Dalit-Bahujan communities have historically faced discrimination in the housing market. In such a scenario, when the state implements a law requiring administrative permission for property transactions, the process gets influenced by social biases.

“A large portion of Rajasthan’s economy rests on the labour of migrant workers, who work in unorganised sectors and depend on temporary and affordable housing arrangements. When implementing any such law, it is essential to consider the housing rights and actual living conditions of migrant workers; otherwise, the law may unintentionally push the most vulnerable sections further toward the margins.”

Legal and constitutional objections

Concerns have also been expressed from legal and constitutional viewpoints.

Akhil Choudhary, advocate, Rajasthan High Court, told The Federal: “From a constitutional standpoint, the Bill raises serious concerns. The terms like ‘improper clustering’ and ‘demographic imbalance’ are vague and lack precise legal standards, making the law susceptible to challenge under Article 14 on grounds of arbitrariness and excessive delegation. The requirement of prior state permission for property transactions imposes a substantial restriction on property rights under Article 300A, which must satisfy the test of non-arbitrariness.”

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“Further, the law directly impacts the freedom to reside and settle in any part of India under Article 19(1)(e), and such restrictions may not withstand constitutional scrutiny in the absence of narrowly tailored safeguards. Overall, the Bill appears constitutionally infirm and open to challenge on multiple grounds. However, a challenge can lie only after the Bill receives the Governor’s assent and becomes law. This is the practical limitation,” he added.

What state's BJP govt is saying

Rajasthan's saffron party-led government has defended the legislation as a measure to prevent the “improper clustering of persons of one community” and to preserve demographic balance and social harmony.

While debating it in the Assembly, Rajasthan’s Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Jogaram Patel said, “Very often, population imbalance and communal unrest force residents into a distress sale of their properties or cause them to leave rented accommodation in a hurry. This Bill will put an end to forced migration.”

Allaying fears that the Bill would target any particular religion or community, Rajasthan's Minister of State for Home, Jawahar Singh Bedam, said, “The legislation does not target any religion or community as there is no mention of Hindu, Muslim, majority, minority or any specific community in the bill.

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However, he also claimed that some areas in the state were becoming socially inaccessible due to demographic changes. “There are places in Jodhpur and elsewhere where people cannot even enter. Such areas are increasing in Rajasthan,” Bedam added.

Is Rajasthan no more a peaceful state?

The episode has fuelled a debate over the perception of whether Rajasthan is a peaceful state. While it is not traditionally associated with large-scale communal violence like Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh, sporadic incidents of communal tension have been reported from its various parts.

A recent report by the Centre for Study of Society and Secularism, Mumbai, found that while communal riots have dropped nationally by 50 per cent between 2024 and 2025, Rajasthan has seen a rise in localised frictions, which even led to mass detentions and internet shutdowns.