Burn this 'black' ordinance: Mamata Banerjee on proposed land reforms
Kharagpur, West Bengal: Claiming that the situation under Narendra Modi government "is worse than Emergency", West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday said that her government will not implement the proposed amendments under the Land Acquisition Act.
Terming the land ordinance as "black ordinance" and "unjust", Ms Banerjee said, "they will snatch your land on gun point. I throw this challenge. We will not allow this in Bengal. They will have to do this over my dead body."
"We will fight against the 'black' and 'unjust' ordinance on land acquisition by burning symbolic copies of it," the Trinamool Congress chief, who rode to power in 2011 on the back of game-changing agitations against land acquisition in Singur and Nandigram, said.
"This government is bulldozing democracy across the country. One political party may come to power and go. But the government will continue forever and democracy will continue forever. The Narendra Modi government has created a situation in the entire country which is worse than Emergency," she said while addressing a public meeting at the Khargapur college ground.
Ms Banerjee's outburst came a day after the government recommended promulgation of an ordinance making significant changes in the Land Acquisition Act including removal of consent clause for acquiring land for five areas of industrial corridors, PPP projects, rural infrastructure, affordable housing and defence.
"The central government has 'forcefully' brought an ordinance on land acquisition. The country is going through a dangerous phase due to the BJP government," she said.
She also referred to the Centre's plan to stop '100 Days work' programme in a bid to sell the country by bringing in Foreign Direct Investment or FDI in insurance and defence.
