NEW DELHI: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday accused the government of snatching the rights of the poor and the land of farmers around the national capital in the name of development, and said he would raise this issue in Parliament and ensure justice for every person in rural Delhi.
In a post on Facebook, Gandhi said he met some farmers of rural Delhi who told him about the government’s land pooling scheme, as it took away their land in the name of development. This would not be allowed under any circumstance, he said.
“Meeting and speaking with representatives from rural Delhi at the Jan Sansad, the pain of poor farmers across the country resonated: In the name of “development,” the Modi government is snatching away the rights of the poor for the benefit of the rich.
“They clearly stated that an organised conspiracy is underway to seize land from villages bordering Delhi, which is extremely serious and worrying,” the leader of the opposition in Lok Sabha claimed. He said the UPA government had enacted a strong land acquisition law to protect farmers’ rights -- one that takes into account both their voluntary participation and compensation.
“Today, bypassing that very law, policies like land pooling are depriving villagers of their land, employment, and future, sometimes through coercion, sometimes through deception. This attempt to usurp the constitutional rights of farmers, villagers, and the poor will not be allowed to succeed under any circumstances. This isn’t just land, it’s the foundation of their identity, history, and life,” the Congress leader said.
“I will strongly raise this issue in Parliament and ensure justice for every citizen of rural Delhi,” Gandhi said in his Facebook post.