After making futile attempt in the Telangana Assembly to persuade the K Chandrashekar Rao government to restrain from moving ahead of its controversial land bill, the Telangana Congress Committee is now looking towards President Pranab Mukherjee urging him not to give his assent for the bill.

Congress leaders accuses that the ‘Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Telangana Amendment) Bill, 2016,’ passed by the Assembly, is aimed at converting the government into a “land mafia” to snatch away lands from farmers in the name of projects.

Congress delegation led by TPCC President N Uttam Kumar Reddy calling on the President at Rashtrapati Nilayam in Secunderabad, in a memorandum urged him to reject the bill when it comes to him for his assent. They informed the President that the state government amended the key provisions of the R&R Act, 2013, passed by Parliament during the UPA regime, and removed safeguards such as social impact assessment and R&R package, and other benefits provided to landowners.

They deplored that the state’s proposed law is an attempt to take away the hard-fought rights and protections to the affected families in the name of administrative convenience in acquiring lands for projects.

They also brought to the notice of the constitutional validity of the bill passing by a state assembly stating that Section 107 of R&R Act, 2013 makes it clear that no amendments be made to it unless the proposed changes are aimed at improving the benefits. They made it is clear that the amendments made by the government will dilute the protections.