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Looking to step up its opposition to the controversial ordinance amending the land acquisition Act, Congress has convened a meeting of party general secretaries here on Monday to chalk out plans for a nationwide agitation for painting the government as 'anti-farmer'. The Land Acquisition Act, a landmark legislation of United Progressive Alliance (UPA)- II, was the brainchild of Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi, and the party is accusing the Narendra Modi government of seeking to take the 'heart and soul' out of the legislation.
The meeting on Monday has been convened by Congress General Secretary Janardan Dwivedi at a time when the All India Congress Committee (AICC) has made it amply evident that it will take an aggressive stance in the coming days on issues like the land ordinance, excise duty hike on petrol and diesel and creation of NITI Aayog.
Accusing the government of bringing the ordinance to help "vested interests", AICC has pointed out that the land acquisition Bill was finalised by a Parliamentary Committee headed by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Sumitra Mahajan, now the Lok Sabha Speaker.
