During Zero Hour in the Rajya Sabha recently, a matter of concern was brought to light by a member of Parliament (MP) of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). MP Satnam Singh Sandhu, who is also Founder Chancellor of Chandigarh University, mentioned that NRIs were forced to sell their ancestral properties on finding either their building or land encroached upon.

Sandhu said NRIs were “national ambassadors”, according to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and that overseas Indians were responsible for the huge increase in remittances to the country.

He said, around 3.5 crore NRIs play an active role in helping the nation move towards Viksit Bharat, an initiative by the government to realize India’s aspiration of becoming a developed nation by its centennial year of Independence.

While all this paints a positive picture, Sandhu highlighted the alarming trend of property grabbing that plagues NRIs in the country. He said, Indians abroad wish to retain their ancestral properties here in India because of their love for the country. But several incidents lately showed that the properties were being encroached upon. For fear of completely losing their properties, NRIs end up selling what they own in India to move away for good. “This is a very serious issue,” said Sandhu. It is “our duty to ensure protection” of properties belonging to NRIs so that they do not lose confidence in the Indian system. The properties must be mapped thoroughly in order to check encroachment, he added. – editor@nrifocus.com