The All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) has planned a rally at the heart of the city on Wednesday where Party Chief Whip Sovandeb Chattopadhyay will burn a copy of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013.

“We will burn the copy of the amendments in the Act and initiate a State-wide campaign,” said Mr. Chattopadhyay. While party’s spokesperson Derek O’Brien had said two days ago that leadership would study the amendments closely before reacting. The party has decided to step-up its campaign, realising that AITC and its management is fast running out of steam.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her party are under severe stress in Bengal owing to several investigations led by Central agencies. Observers now believe that the land ordinance has provided Ms. Banerjee with the “handle” that she was looking for.

Ms Banerjee, who catapulted to political prominence after her protest movements against forcible land acquisition in Singur and Nandigram, said that the amendment empowers the Centre to forcibly occupy land at gun point.

AITC is expected step up its political programmes countering the new land policy from Thursday, when the party celebrates its 17th birthday.

The new amendment empowers the government to acquire land without consulting the farmer in certain categories. The government may not consider the nature of fertility of the land, which was mandatory under the Act.

Source: TH