FM Arun Jaitley defends amendments to Land Act

Union finance minister Arun Jaitley has dismissed the Congress criticism of changes in the Land Acquisition Act saying these would ensure higher compensation to land owners while fulfilling development needs of the nation.

"The amendment ... balances the developmental needs of India, particularly rural India, while still providing enhanced compensation to the land owners," Jaitley said in his Facebook post titled 'Amendments to the Land Acquisition Law - The Real Picture' on Sunday.

The decision of the Cabinet to take the Ordinance route to push changes in land acquisition laws had elicited a sharp reaction from former United Progressive Alliance minister and Congress leader Jairam Ramesh, who had said that the amendments are "disturbing" as they would encourage forcible eviction.

Jaitley hit back at Ramesh saying, "Those who are opposed to it can certainly mandate their party's state governments not to use the provisions of the Ordinance.

History will judge how these states will lose out in the era of competitive federalism." The need to amend this Act was due and that it had been repeatedly mentioned that the Land Acquisition Act, 1894, had become obsolete and needed amendment, he added.

Ramesh had said that the Land Acquisition Bill became an Act in September 2013 after hectic parleys between various political parties. He added that what is bjectionable "is both the Ordinance itself ... the Ordinance route which is anti-democratic and secondly the substance of the Ordinance".

Jaitley said, "The compensation provisions in the 1894 Act were highly inadequate and it was desirable that higher compensation coupled with a rehabilitation and resettlement package be provided. The 2013 Act did that. I support the 2013 Act on that ground."

However, 13 Acts of Parliament which provided for land acquisition were put in the Fourth Schedule of the Act, he pointed out. Section 105, which provided that the government could issue a notification and direct 'any' provision of the Act relating to compensation or R&R (resettlement & rehabilitation) would be made applicable to the exempted Acts, Jailtye added. The 'proposed' notification had to be placed before Parliament within a period of 30 days and Parliament was expected to approve, disapprove or modify the proposed notification. The need for an Ordinance arose because such a notification would have to be put before Parliament in the Budget Session itself in July-August 2014, and the approval or disapproval taken accordingly, Jaitley explained.

December 31, 2014, being the last day for such a notification, the government decided to amend Section 105 and apply all the compensation and R&R provisions of the 2013 Act to the 13 exempted laws, he further explained.

Meanwhile, former Union minister and Congress leader Sachin Pilot slammed the government over the Ordinance in Jaipur saying the amendments being brought by the Modi government in the Land Acquisition Act are against farmers.