Chandigarh, October 11, 2010: BJP National Kissan Morcha President Mr. O.P Dhankar, BJP National Secretary, Kissan Morcha, Sukhminderpal Singh Grewal, Party Workers and Farmers in large numbers from Punjab and Haryana today staged Dharna at Village Khuda Ali Sher, Chandigarh in protest against the delay in introduction of Land Acquisition Bill, 2007 in the Parliament.

Dhankar stated that UPA led Congress Government is purposefully sitting over Land Acquisition Bill, 2007 for past 3 years to help their aides and capitalists to acquire land of the farmer in the garb of SEZ Act, 2005 and Industrialization. Dhankar said that the UPA Government has notified 360 Special Economic Zones in India to facilitate Industrialists to setup their Units and provide employment but most of these Industrial Units have not seen light of the day as the mere aim of the Capitalists was to acquire land from the farmer at a throw away price and create land banks.

Grewal stated that it is a well known fact that farmers across India have resisted to these forced acquisitions and once thrown out of their own lands these landless farmers have become soft targets of anti India movements such as Naxalism. Since, Land acquisition Act, 1894, is not well equipped to protect the interests of the farming community, so the Land Acquisition Bill, 2007 be tabled in the Winter Session of the Parliament to provide much abated relief to the farmers. Grewal said that fertile land shall be conserved just like Forest Land and only barren and un-irrigated land shall be acquired for Public and Private Projects on lease. Farmer shall get monthly compensation not less than the interest on the land price while the ownership rights remains with farmers. Lease value shall appreciate on year on year basis in conjunction with Rent Law. Further, the lease shall not exceed 99 years in any case. 

Grewal stated that Bharatiya Janta Party have decided to lend their voice to the farming community and will stage protests within and outside the Parliament to ensure the proposed Land Acquisition Bill, 2007  be tabled in the Winter Session of the Parliament and its suggestions in the interest of the farming community are also considered by the UPA Government. Grewal said that today BJP Kisan Morcha have called upon farmers across the country to agitate against the anti-farmer policies of the UPA Government across India at District and State Headquarters.  Later O.P Dhankar handed over a Memorandum in this context to the Honourable President of India  through Deputy Commissioner, Chandigarh.