The BJP launched an all-out effort to push the new amendments to the Land Acquisition Act on a day that the ruling party was cornered not just by the Opposition but by its own allies.

At the BJP parliamentary party meeting on Tuesday morning, MPs were asked to defend the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Amendment) Bill, 2015 against what was termed “misleading propaganda” by the Opposition. However, as the ruling party faced stiff opposition from its allies, especially from the Swabhimani Shetkari Sangathana and the Shiv Sena, a meeting of the NDA was called in the Parliament precincts late in the evening.

Rural Development Minister Choudhary Birendra Singh made a presentation explaining the ordinance and its beneficial effects to NDA allies at the meeting. However, the Shiv Sena continued to oppose the ordinance. “We are with the government. But we are also with the farmers,” said Sena leader Sanjay Rout after the NDA meeting. “We want certain points to be reviewed.”

“There is no question of Shiv Sena supporting any law that goes against the interest of farmers,” Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray said in a statement.

At the NDA meeting, MPs discussed issues such as what comprises “fair compensation” between market rates and circle rates of the land. Some MPs claimed they were not aware that compensation required to be given is several times the market rate for the acquired land.

Worrisome perception

A number of MPs BusinessLine spoke to felt that while the amendments may be justified, the perception that they are anti-farmer is worrisome.

“We are trying now to spread awareness about what the amendments are all about. All of this should have been done even before we brought the ordinance. Whatever we do now will be seen as anti-farmer. At the same time, if we back down, it will be seen as a defeat. We are a bit stuck,” an MP said.

Meanwhile, the BJP has started circulating facts related to the new Bill through all its social media outlets. The party’s official Twitter handle circulated a long pamphlet titled Land Acquisition – Fact and Fiction . It detailed various provisions of the proposed Bill and gave details of how it is actually a “pro-farmer” legislation.

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