Land acquisition law is draconian: Mamata

Terming the land acquisition law as "draconian", Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee, a staunch opponent of the proposed amendments to the measure, today said that she is against "forcible" acquiring of land.

Terming the land acquisition law as "draconian", Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee, a staunch opponent of the proposed amendments to the measure, today said that she is against "forcible" acquiring of land.

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"I am against forcible land acquisition. Land acquisition law is a draconian law as it is not only me but everybody has said so," Banerjee said at an economic editors' conference in New Delhi.

"We are using our land bank for various railway projects including the dedicated freight corridor (DFC) and there is no need for forcible land acquisition," she said.

Railways have created a land bank of 1.33 lakh acres to be used for various rail projects.

"Even if we acquire any land, it will be acquired with the consent of the land owner with adequate compensation including a job offer," she said.

Just two days ago, Banerjee skipped a meeting convened by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee to sort out differences on the Land Acquisition (Amendment) Bill, 2007.

Banerjee said Railways had suffered losses to the tune of Rs 1500 crore due to poor law and order situation and bandhs. "It is becoming a soft target for all these bandhs. Our night operations are still suspended in some areas due to the law and order problem.

"Every other day there is a bandh by these extremists. Train operation has been suspended in Kashmir due to the law and order problem. We have lost more than Rs 1500 crore to these bandhs in these years," the Minister said.