New Delhi, Sep 18 (IANS): The BJP on Friday accused the Congress of acquiring land in Haryana without consent of farmers during its rule and asked the main opposition party to clarify its position on the issue before holding a Kisan rally here on Sunday.
"Those who acquired lakhs of acres of famers' lands in Haryana, Maharashtra, Karnataka and other Congress ruled states, without paying adequate compensation and depriving them of livelihood, are now portraying themselves as well-wishers of the farming community," Urban Development Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu said here.
"Attempts are being made to create false fear in the mind of farmers about the Land Acquisition Bill pushed by the NDA government," Naidu and union Rural Development Minister Chaudhary Birender Singh said in a joint statement.
The BJP leaders also said the NDA government brought the 13 central acts under the purview of the existing land law to provide compensation.
"These legislations were excluded by the then UPA government from the ambit of the Land Acquisition Law. Why these 13 acts were not included in the first instance in the 2013 Act itself? The Congress owes an explanation to people in this regard," they said in the statement.
Both the ministers accused the Congress of acquiring huge tracts of lands from farmers dead cheap.
"There is no end to such land scams presided over by the Congress. In the state of Haryana, nearly 80,000 acres of farmers' lands were acquired under different pretexts. However, we are all aware who has benefited from such deals."
"The lands purportedly meant for Special Economic Zones, Industrial Corridors etc. have landed in the kitty of big industrial houses whereas the farmers were left high and dry. Out of 37 SEZs that were notified in last 10 years in Haryana, only 6 have been made operational," they said.
The ministers maintained the present Land Acquisition Bill was in the interest of the people and welfare of farmers, but the Congress and its friends have resorted to false propaganda.
"We want to reassure our farmers that 'Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan' is not merely a slogan, it is our guiding mantra. The guiding mantra is the welfare of the villages and the poor farmers. That is why we declared on August 15 that it is not just an agricultural department but an agricultural and farmer welfare department will be created. We are moving ahead on that proposal," they said.