Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday accused the NDA government of “killing” the land Bill passed by the previous UPA government.
He said that the government has removed the essential clauses on consent and social impact in its new Bill.
Speaking in the Lok Sabha on the land Bill brought by the Narendra Modi government, Mr. Gandhi took repeated digs at the government, terming it suit boot ki sarkar and pro-corporate.
“We took two years to bring land Bill. NDA government killed it within a few days,” he said.
He termed consent clause of the 2013 land Act brought by the UPA government as the “most important” part of the legislation.
“(The government) says that if they snatch land, they will do so without asking (the farmer),” Mr. Gandhi said.
He said the government has used the axe second time after the “corpse (of Bill)” fell.
Mr. Gandhi said the government used the axe for third time to remove from the Act the provision, which provided for return of land to the farmer if the project was not initiated in five years.
“Whether the project is completed in five years or 50 years, land will not now be returned to the farmer,” he said.
