New Delhi, March 18
Amid strong opposition from the Left parties, the Government today introduced the Patents (Amendment) Bill, 2005 in the Lok Sabha. The Bill seeks to replace the Ordinance which was promulgated on December 26 last year to enable patenting of products as mandated by an agreement on Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) of the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
The Bill, once passed by Parliament, would allow product patents in pharmaceuticals, agri-products and embedded software.
The Left parties objected to the introduction of the Bill on grounds that it threatened the fundamental right to life of people. Mr V Radhakrishan (CPM) charged the government of committing “fraud on the Constitution” by promulgating the Ordinance. Mr Suresh Kurup, also of the CPM, said that the government had brought the Ordinance against all democratic norms. Mr Veerendra Kumar, JD (S), objected to the introduction of the Bill and said that the government was considering Parliament as an “informing body”.
Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath, who introduced the Bill, said that the “views of the members would be seriously considered”. “The objections raised were one of legislative competence and not substantive points in the Bill”, he said adding, “I will be able to convince the members”.
The government said that the time-frame for the set of amendments was most crucial as any slippage in meeting the January 1, 2005 deadline had the potential of inviting retaliatory action under the WTO disputes mechanism.
“Having availed of the entire 10-year transition period provided under the TRIPs Agreement, India had no legal basis to defend its default on the deadline. The past record of delayed implementation would also not have helped the Indian case. There would have been an erosion of India’s credibility in the international field. In the circumstances it was considered necessary to bring in the required amendments in time as Parliament was not in session,” the government explained in the Bill.
The Bill aims at introducing product patent protection in all fields of technology, including drugs, food and chemicals. Product patent in other fields already existed under the existing patent law. The Bill modifies provisions relating to exclusive marketing rights, as they were part of the transitional arrangements.
The BJP members demanded withdrawal of the Bill and sought a division of votes during its introduction. Speaker Somnath Chatterjee, however, overruled the objections.
Meanwhile, the BJP today reiterated its demand for sending the controversial Patents Bill to a Standing Committee or a Joint Select Committee. It said it would not allow the government to get the bill passed in Parliament through a voice vote and would press for division of vote.
