The contentious Land Acquisition Bill of the Narendra Modi government may not make it to the upcoming Monsoon Session of Parliament. Congress party leaders, who are part of the parliamentary panel examining the bill, have sought an extension. According to them, the committee is yet to receive the response of all state governments on the validity of the bill. The move comes as a major setback for the NDA government, which has struggled to pass the bill in Rajya Sabha, where it does not enjoy a majority. This comes days after the government faced attacks from NGOs and farmer organisations over the Land Acquisition Bill. Several organisations, including National Alliance for Farmers Movement (NAFM), All India Coordination Committee of Farmers, Bhartiya Kisan Union (A) and Shetkari Sangathan had made their representation before the Joint Committee of Parliament going into the issue. Meanwhile, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had also asserted that her government would not make any compromise on the issue of land bill. Her comments followed Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley’s recent statement that if the bill was not passed in the Rajya Sabha, the government would convene a joint session of Parliament. Notably, the government had in May promulgated the controversial Land Acquisition Ordinance for the third time, much to the displeasure of opposition parties, including Congress. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had then said that the legislation was "not a matter of life or death for me" and that he was prepared to accept any suggestions.
