The ruling BJP on Tuesday mounted a counter-offensive against Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi’s “suit-boot ki sarkar” spiel by unearthing details of vast tracts of farmland acquired for Big Business in Andhra Pradesh and Haryana in the past decade, when the Congress was ruling those States.
The party fielded senior minister M Venkaiah Naidu, Nitin Gadkari and Birendra Singh to reveal that during the Congress’s decade-long tenure in Haryana and undivided Andhra Pradesh, a staggering 80,000 acres and 1,29,456 hectares of land respectively were acquired in the two States. The Ministers said that in both the States, land (mostly farmland) had been acquired — without consent, social impact assessments (SIA) or due compensation — for the ostensible purpose of setting up industry.
“Rahul Gandhi is saying that he will not let us take ‘even an inch’ of farmland. I want to ask him — what is your definition of the scale of an inch? Is it 80,000 acres? Is it 1,29,456 hectares? Atonement is being used as a cover-up for murder. Crocodile tears are being shed for farmers after having looted their land for decades. The Congress has committed a grave sin. They are sinners,” he said.
The Minister released details of the land acquired in both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana when the combined State was governed by the Congress.
Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari underlined the Congress’s “hypocrisy” in opposing the amendments to the Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013.
“On June 25, 2014, we were told by Congress chief ministers that development is not possible unless we do not amend the 2013 Act. The minutes of these meetings are available. I want to ask them — did you support the amendments or not… But of course, these questions are not going to be answered because Rahul Gandhi has opened a natak company. They do not want the rural areas to develop and people to prosper because poverty fetches them votes,” said Gadkari.
Probe needed According to Birendra Singh, a thorough investigation is required to unearth scams under the Congress in Haryana.
“Of the 37 SEZs for which land was acquired from the farmers, only six are functional. These SEZs were a façade for real estate developers to use the government’s good offices to acquire farmland at throwaway prices near Delhi and Chandigarh.
“The land use was then changed for real estate development in the vicinity of the Capital (Delhi) and the Capital of Haryana and Punjab (Chandigarh). And now they are teaching us how to do SIA and give compensation to the farmers,” he said.