Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Manish Tewari on Tuesday lashed at the Akali-BJP Government in Punjab for trying to acquire farmers’ land under old laws when the new land Acquisition Act passed by the Parliament was in place.
Congress MP from ludhiana warned the Punjab Government against forcibly acquiring land of farmers in nine villages of his constituency under the “archaic” 1894 Act, which stands repealed. “I won’t let you build your castles after devastating the farmers by forcibly acquiring their land,” Tewari said, while addressing a series of meetings in Dakha.
He said that it was shocking to learn that the Akali Government, which otherwise claimed to be pro-farmer, had decided to acquire land under a 120-year-old law enacted by the imperial British. “let us not forget that the 1894 Act was enacted by the Imperial British and was aimed at snatching away the farmers’ land in India,” he said. The Minister said that he was informed by the State Government officials that the new law would come into effect in Punjab only in January next year. “If it was so, why can’t the State Government wait for a month moreIJ” he asked.