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The Andhra Pradesh Cabinet on Thursday, August 6, approved the withdrawal of the Andhra Pradesh Disha Bill Criminal Law (AP Amendment) Bill, 2019, introduced under the previous YSR Congress Party government. The Bill was named after the victim of gang rape and murder in Hyderabad in 2019.
The Bill had been awaiting assent from the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), which had raised various objections. The Disha Bill sought to make amendments to the then Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) that would enable expeditious investigation and trial of offences against women and children, especially sexual offences, and the pronouncing of the death penalty.
Among other reasons, the Union government had objected to the provision for geo-tagging sexual offenders and also giving a specific name to the legislation.
The Cabinet has now withdrawn the Bill, saying the Union government has asked to reconsider it in view of the implementation of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), which have replaced the IPC and CrPC, The Hindu reported.
The MHA reportedly advised the state government to submit a revised version of the Bill incorporating the Union government’s suggestions.
The Cabinet also approved the draft Andhra Pradesh Public Private Partnership (PPP) Policy 2026 to attract private investment in various sectors, including education and healthcare, Information and Public Relations Minister Kolusu Parthasarathy told the media.
The Cabinet also approved the draft Andhra Pradesh Omnibus Ease of Doing Business Act, 2026.
Parthasarathy also said that the government has approved fresh tenders for the Amaravati Eye project, the construction of a huge observation wheel in the capital region planned along the lines of the Dubai Eye.