The cabinet yesterday approved the draft of the “Railway Property (Unlawful Possession Reclamation) Act-2016” with a provision of maximum 7 years of jail or fine for illegally occupying and stealing railway properties.

Unlawful possession of any railway property would be considered as a punishable offence, Cabinet Secretary Mohammad Shafiul Alam told reporters after the meeting at the secretariat.

The draft law is being formulated translating the martial law regime promulgated “Railway Property (Unlawful Possession) Ordinance-1979” into Bangla as per directives of the Supreme Court. There will be little changes in the proposed law, he said.

The cabinet secretary said anyone helping others in keeping railway properties under their possession illegally would be sentenced to five years of rigorous imprisonment or fine or both.

As per the proposed law, the railway security force could arrest any accused without warrant as such acts would be considered as “cognisable offences”, he said.

The officer concerned in charge of the Railway Security Force could exercise power like that of an officer-in-charge of a police station, he said.

A total of 4,391 acres of railway land across the country is currently under occupation of semi-government, autonomous, religious and educational institutions.

The government has been successful in recovering 132 acres of land since October last year, Railway Minister Mujibul Haque told parliament on April 24.

The cabinet adopted a condolence motion at the death of former state minister Mujibur Rahman Fakir MP.

At the meeting, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina sent back a proposal to hike allowances for the gallantry awarded freedom fighters from 60 percent to 150 percent. The PM said she was in favour of increasing the allowances of the general freedom fighters instead of the gallantry awarded ones as they are solvent, meeting sources told The Daily Star.