Slamming the Centre for bringing in amendments to the Land Acquisition Act, AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday said that if voted to power, he would "not allow Narendra Modi" to forcibly acquire the land of the poor.
The former Delhi chief minister claimed that the changes in the 2013 legislation, which have been effected by way of an ordinance, were designed to enable the government to "snatch" the land on which unauthorised colonies have come up in the national capital. He further alleged that the amendments would also adversely affect the farmers and rural population of Delhi.
Addressing the second leg of Delhi's Village Dialogue at Chhatarpur, Kejriwal charged that the amendments were a result of the "pressure" on BJP to secure benefits to a "selected few people and companies" who had funded their Lok Sabha election campaign.
"The government, including DDA, acquired land from farmers in 1970s and 80s, but did not use it. In some cases, the farmers did not take the compensation because they did not agree to the acquisition. Over a period of time, unauthorised colonies came up there. But on paper, the land still belongs to the government.
"Under the new law, most of the land on which the unauthorised colonies have come up can be acquired by the government. Your land will go or people will be asked to pay more money," Kejriwal said.
Trying to woo voters after the Modi Cabinet recently cleared an ordinance to regularise unauthorised colonies, Kejriwal said the Centre has to make it clear whether the new provisions in that regard make it the owner of the land on which the unauthorised colonies have come up.
"These colonies have not been regularised for a long time due to wrong policies of successive governments. Does it mean that now the government agencies will become the owner of such land according to the provisions of the ordinance? Chhatarpur will bear most of the brunt because of this law," he claimed.
Kejriwal also cautioned that a BJP-led government at the Centre and in Delhi would be "detrimental".
"If Kejriwal comes to power, then he will not allow Narendra Modi to do this (forcibly acquire land)," he said, adding that the land amendments were not beneficial for farmers.
"The BJP has cheated the people of Delhi. Your land will be protected till my last breadth," Kejriwal further said.
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