Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal on Saturday said his party the Shiromani Akali Dal wants that not even an inch of land should be acquired by Government without the consent of the farmers and the land owners.He said, the Akali Dal has already made its stand crystal clear to the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) regarding the proposed Right to fair Compensation and Transparency the land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Amendment) Ordinance.
Talking to the mediapersons on the second day of his Sangat Darshan Programme in Jandiala Guru Assembly segment, the Chief Minister said that all SAD MPs in lok Sabha had submitted a detailed memorandum to the chairman of JPC stipulating that land was a priceless assets of the farmers and it should not be acquired by the Government without the consent of the farmers and land owners. likewise, land should only be acquired for public sector projects and the Government should not get into acquisition of private entities.
Badal said Punjab had a time tested success story of land acquisition policy which ensured that no land was acquired forcefully and whenever land was acquired, the interests of the farmers/owners whose land was acquired were paramount and were protected by giving them an option at the rate of market rate plus displacement allowance of 30 per cent or becoming partners in the proposed project through a land pooling policy.The Chief Minister said the Shiromani Akali Dal has impressed upon the Union Government wherever the land was to be acquired, farmers should be given the option of accepting compensation on market rate plus displacement allowance or join a land pooling process under a policy as followed in Punjab. Further, the farmer should not be denied the right to approach court for redress of grievance.
Badal said the state should be given a free hand for fixing market price of the land to be acquired and that price should be accepted for all acquisition, regardless of whether these were done for the state government or the Central government or the public projects. The Chief Minister emphasized that the Punjab model of land acquisition policy should be followed while finalizing a national policy on the subject as SAD was a votary of fool proof safeguards for compensating the farmers and those dependent on land including farm and labourers.
Asked About the state wide mass contact program launched by former Chief Minister Capt. Amarinder Singh, the Chief Minister dared Amarinder Singh to list out any single village in the state which he had ever visited during his tenure as Chief Minister from 2002 to 2007 to redress the grievances of people. “Sangat Darshan program was the most effective platform for the general masses to get their day to day genuine issues addressed on the spot with the participation of local administration,” he said, adding “ Sangat Darshan is the only channel of two way communication which is the essence of clean, transparent and accountable governance on the contrary mass contact program being carried out by Amarinder Singh is merely a ploy to promote his own image on one hand and to pursue his hidden agenda to capture power by exploiting the sentiments of the people on the other”.Badal quipped, “Capt. Amarinders tenure was dominated by his lust to rule over the masses as Chief Minister of the state, being a monarch whereas I, being an elected representative of the people, am ever committed to serve them with all humility and dedication as a loyal public servant. I will always serve the people with the same zeal, sincerity and commitment till my last breath.”