The Karnataka legislative assembly on Tuesday ushered in a significant reform for the state's rental housing sector by passing The Karnataka Rent (Amendment) Bill, 2025. The pivotal change decriminalises minor violations under the existing rent laws, replacing the threat of imprisonment with monetary penalties. This move is strategically designed to reduce friction between property owners and tenants and to encourage more formal rental agreements across the state.
Modernising Rental Regulations
Piloting the bill, Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda explained that the existing legal framework imposed disproportionately harsh punishments for minor infractions. This severity, he argued, had the unintended effect of discouraging both parties from entering into formal, legally documented arrangements. The new amendment brings Karnataka's law in alignment with the Centre's Model Tenancy Act of 2021.
"The existing law prescribes stringent punishment such as imprisonment," Gowda told the legislative house. "While the Centre has enacted a model tenancy law to decriminalise violations, we are adopting a state legislation. It is in the interest of both the property owners and tenants." The government projects this update as a crucial step towards modernising rental regulation, ensuring faster dispute resolution, and fostering a more transparent rental ecosystem.
Key Provisions and Penalties
Under the newly amended law, the key shift is from criminal liability to financial accountability for minor violations. Instead of facing jail time, a convicted accused will now be subject to a fine. The penalty can be up to Rs 5,000 or an amount equal to double the monthly rent received by the owner, whichever is higher. This change is expected to significantly reduce litigation anxiety among tenants and landlords, improving overall compliance with rental agreements without the draconian fear of imprisonment for small breaches.
Other Bills Passed in the Session
The rent law amendment was part of a batch of bills passed by the assembly on Tuesday, covering diverse areas from land revenue to education and labour welfare.
The House approved The Land Revenue (Second Amendment) Bill, 2025, which aims to simplify and standardise revenue records concerning ancestral Jamma Bane land in Kodagu district. Minister Gowda stated that errors had crept into land records during the transition from pre-Independence systems, incorrectly listing clan heads as owners of divided properties. To resolve long-standing disputes, the government plans to conduct adalat-style hearings at the tahsildar level, with appeals possible up to the deputy commissioner.
Another significant bill was The Greater Bengaluru Governance (Second Amendment) Bill, 2025. This amendment allows Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha MPs representing Bengaluru constituencies to become members of the Greater Bengaluru Authority. Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar noted this corrected earlier nomination omissions, including MPs like K Sudhakar and Sudha Murty.
In the education sector, The Karnataka State Universities (Second Amendment) Bill, 2025 was passed, which renames Rani Channamma University as Kittur Rani Channamma University. For labour welfare, the assembly passed an amendment to the Karnataka Labour Welfare Fund, extending benefits to employees in smaller establishments by lowering the eligibility threshold to companies with more than 10 workers.
The collective passage of these bills marks a substantial day of legislative activity in Karnataka, with the rent amendment standing out as a direct measure to impact the daily lives of millions of tenants and property owners in urban centres like Bengaluru.
