AAP Goa protested against the recent Ordinance with regressive changes to Land Acquisition Bill 2013. AAP Goa volunteers burnt copies of the Ordinance as a mark of protest, and submitted the following memorandum to District Collectors of North Goa and South Goa. ____________________________ To The Prime Minister of India, New Delhi. Copy: The District Collector Sub: Ordinance amending Land Acquisition (RFCTLARR) Act of 2013 Sir/Madam, We are shocked that the Government of India has drastically amended the Land Acquisition (RFCTLARR) Act of 2013 by ordinance without even a modicum of debate – thus setting the clock back to the British colonial area by allowing land to be taken away from farmers and adivasis without any process of obtaining consent or even an assessment of who exactly is getting impacted by the land acquisition and to what extent. As you remember, the 2013 Act was the culmination of decades of struggle by farmers’ movements and social movements across the country against the sheer injustice of the land acquisition process which had displaced crores of families in the name of national interest while they were not even consulted or made part of the process of development. The government has, in one stroke, betrayed the entire farming and adivasi community and made it clear to them that the government is putting the interests of its powerful corporate masters above the interests of the majority of the citizens. Aam Aadmi Party strongly opposes the amendments made to the Act and demands that the government immediately withdraw the Ordinance, and bring any proposed amendments to the floor of the Parliament for a full debate. Through its nationwide protest, Aam Aadmi Party puts the government on notice that farmers, adivasis and justice-minded citizens across the nation are rising up against this injustice and will not tolerate any dilution of the Act. In particular, the following points are of strong concern to the party which will be raised both inside the Parliament and in the court of public opinion. 1. After a long struggle and negotiation, the government and the Indian polity agreed to some basic principles: • Land acquisition must not take place without a process of obtaining consent • Land acquisition must not be permitted in multi-crop land jeopardizing food security • Acquisition must be preceded by an assessment of its impact not just on land owners but on all sections of the society, and this must happen transparently with public hearings • All the affected persons thus identified should attain a better standard of living post-acquisition The amendments would mean that now Social Impact Assessment, food security provision & consent of 70% of land owners will not be required before acquiring land for five broad categories that the government has specified (more on these categories in point 2). Thus for all practical purposes, we are back to the draconian 1894 Act which people’s movements had fought to change. 2. The Government proposes to exempt five categories of Acquisitions from the procedural requirements of the 2013 Act. These five categories are: defence, industrial corridors, rural infrastructure, affordable housing including housing for the poor and any infrastructure including social infrastructure in PPP mode where the land is owned by the government. Basically the contractor-bureaucrat-politican nexus would be able to fit every acquisition under one of these five categories. Even 5-star hotels, corporate hospitals and corporate colleges would qualify for these amendments. In effect, the Amendment annuls the Act itself. 3. The retroactive provision has been amended which had given relief to those farmers whose lands were acquired more than 5 years ago but where the process was not completed till now. Similarly, the provision of returning the land to original owner if not utilized within 5 years. 4. As reported earlier, all projects related to defence have been exempted. The crucial thing is that defence has been defined now to include any project vital to national security and defence production. This definition can include all kinds of infrastructural projects and private projects. 5. The original stringent provision about punishment for violation of this Act by any government official has been reversed. Earlier the Head of the Department was held responsible if the violation took place with their knowledge and connivance. The Amendment removes this provision and actually provides special immunity to the government officials under Section 197 of CCP. So there won’t be accountability for officials for violating this Act. 6. It is absolutely unjustified to use an Ordinance to make such a far-reaching change in one of the most important laws of the land. Ordinance route has been provided for in order to meet an emergency situation in-between two sessions of parliament. What was the emergency in this case? The next session is in the third week of February. Why could the government not wait till then? 7. The Act of 2013 was passed with support from most political parties including the BJP. The parliamentary Committee that cleared the bill was headed by Ms. Sumitra Mahajan, the current speaker. Senior leaders of the ruling party including Mr. Rajnath Singh and Mrs. Sushma Swaraj made strong statements in the Parliament that social impact assessment, consent of land-owners and return of land provisions are very crucial. What has changed since then? 8. The Act has not got a fair chance so far. Most states have not framed Rules necessary for its implementation. How come it has been found to be impractical without even a trial? The simple truth is that the government has decided to favour big business and industry in the hope that the people will not understand or challenge its move. But we are confident that the aam aadmi and aurat of the country will not allow this injustice to go ahead. Aam Aadmi Party makes a single demand with the Government of India – that this Ordinance should be immediately withdrawn.
Posted on: Mon, 05 Jan 2015 14:31:37 +0000
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