Land acquisition stir:Rahul Gandhi meets Greater Noida farmers

Greater Noida, May 11: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi today interacted with villagers of Bhatta Parsaul in Greater Noida which witnessed violent clashes between the police and farmers over the issue of land acquisition.

Catching the administration off guard, Rahul reached the village at 6:AM and visited the houses of villagers.

He is interacting with the locals to understand their problems.

After four persons, including two policemen, were killed in Saturday''s clashes between police and farmers in Greater Noida, the place has turned into a political battleground for parties which have flayed the Uttar Pradesh government''s land acquisition policy.

The Amethi MP had last year visited Tappal Village in Aligarh district where the farmers had launched a protest demanding higher compensation for the land acquired by the Mayawati government for the Yamuna expressway project.

Farmers in Greater Noida and adjoining areas are demanding more compensation from the Mayawati government for their land.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had yesterday assured a delegation of Rashtriya Lok Dal leaders in Delhi that the Government will move the crucial bill to amend the Land Acquisition Act in the coming session of Parliament.

Condemning police action on farmers in Gautam Buddha Nagar, senior BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi had yesterday demanded that a new law for rehabilitation of people displaced by land acquisition should be framed.

"Taking farmers land at cheaper rates and permitting industrialists to misuse it is wrong," Joshi had said.

In the wake of the ongoing agitation over land acquisition, farmers held a panchayat under the leadership of Jitender Nagar in Mahrauli village of Ghaziabad district yesterday and refused to part with their land.

The farmers went on a door-to-door campaign to mobilise support and asked villagers to press the government to give them back their acquired land.

OneIndia News