By IANS,
Aligarh : Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi Saturday accused the Mayawati government of giving the land of “lakhs of farmers” in Uttar Pradesh to builders and said the farmers had to face bullets if they demanded their rights.
Addressing the party’s massive farmers’ rally or ‘kisan mahapanchayat’ at Numaish Maidan here, Gandhi compared the land acquisition policy of Congress-ruled Haryana with that of the Mayawati government and said farmers in Uttar Pradesh were not even informed when their lands were acquired.
“Land of lakhs of farmers is being taken in Uttar Pradesh and being given to builders. When farmers say give us our rights, they have to face bullets,” Gandhi said.
Referring to his visit to Tappal last year and to Bhatta-Parsaul villages of Greater Noida in May, Gandhi said that protesting farmers had to face police bullets.
“The painful thing is that the farmers were not doing anything wrong. Only seeking their rights. Police fired at them, killed them,” he said.
Gandhi said he had not met any farmer or labourer who was against development.
“They want proper money for their land. They are not against development or against roads,” Gandhi said, and added that land was taken from farmers for constructing golf courses.
He said the central government will try to bring in a land acquisition bill in the interest of farmers.
“We will try our best to give such a law in Lok Sabha that is in the interest of farmers, labourers,” he said.
Referring to his march over the past four days through villages in western Uttar Pradesh that culminated in the kisan mahapanchayat Saturday, Gandhi said leaders should go to the people.
Congress leaders present at the rally included state Congress chief Rita Bahuguna Joshi and union ministers Salman Khurshid, Sri Prakash Jaiswal, Sachin Pilot, R.P.N. Singh and Beni Prasad Verma.