Zameen Wapasi: Congress’ plan to oppose Land Acquisition bill

New Delhi: Launching its protest against the Land Acquisition bill and the government’s plans to make land acquisition easier for the industry, senior congress leaders on Wednesday protested at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi.

Congress leaders say the government’s land reforms are ‘anti-farmers’ and structured entirely to benefit corporates who according to the Congress Prime Minister Narendra Modi openly favours.

Attacking Narendra Modi led government, senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh said, “NDA government is betraying the farmers as they have decided to fulfill the promises made to industrialists.”

Addressing the protest Singh further added, “Farmers seem to be on one side and industrialists on another. People have to decide who they are with.”

Another senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel slammed Modi government and said, “Before coming to power, BJP was talking about making a Congress-mukt country, but now they are trying to make farmer-mukt India.”

“The land ordinance protest should not be limited to just Jantar Mantar, should spread to every village,” he added further while addressing the demonstration.

Taking a jibe at the ‘ghar-wapasi’ campaign by the affiliates of saffron party Congress have named their protest ‘zameen wapasi’.

Earlier on Wednesday, Union ministers Nitin Gadkari and Rajnath Singh met Prime Minister to discuss their strategy for land acquisition, given that dissenters include key allies like the Shiv Sena and the BJP’s ideological mentor, the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh or RSS.

The controversial land reforms which was introduced as an ordinance or decree – exempt projects in defence, rural electrification, rural housing and industrial corridors from provisions of a law enacted by the previous Congress party government that mandated the consent of 80 percent of affected landowners for any deal.

The government has also removed the need for companies to conduct a social impact study of such projects, which would involve public hearings.

However, Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi, who has committed himself in the past for championing farmers’ right, was missing from action.

Gandhi has taken “a leave of absence” for part of this parliamentary session, his party said earlier this week, without commenting on whether he is in India or abroad.