Manish Tewari said party general secretary Rahul Gandhi has already met prime minister Manmohan Singh and has apprised him of the "anger" of the farmers on the land acquisition issue.
Congress today extended support to the rally by farmers near Parliament House against the land acquisition policy of the BSP government in Uttar Pradesh even though it did not participate in the demonstration.
"A rally of farmers was held. We sympathise with them. But the issue is extensive and not limited to Uttar Pradesh alone," party spokesman Manish Tewari told reporters in New Delhi.
Parties cutting across political divide participated in the rally. While RLD played a major role, the participants included top leaders from BJP, CPI, CPI(M), JD(U), LJP, TDP and AIADMK.
Tewari said party general secretary Rahul Gandhi has already met prime minister Manmohan Singh and has apprised him of the "anger" of the farmers on the land acquisition issue.
"Congress has already demanded that the government should place the Land Acquisition Bill before the Parliament, either in its original form or in an amended form," Tewari said.
Asked about the opposition of party ally Trinamool Congress to the bill, the spokesman merely said, "the changing contours of development versus nature and where does the human being stand in this process was an issue which the politicians and intellectuals should think about".
To a query whether consultations will be held with TC chief Mamata Banerjee on the issue, Tewari said, "this is all what democracy is all about" and referred to the discussions with opposition BJP which led to the passage of the nuclear liability bill in the Lok Sabha.
Referring to the rally of Rahul Gandhi in Orissa, Tewari said this showed the sensitivity of the Congress towards the tribals and their life-style and was a way to express solidarity with them.
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