New Delhi: Congress on Monday trained guns at the ruling NDA in Bihar, alleging that the BJP is giving 1,050 acres of land in the state to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “friend” Gautam Adani at Rs 1 for 33 years for a power project, just ahead of Assembly elections in the state, and allowing it to sell electricity to people at Rs 6.75 per unit.
Addressing a press conference at the party headquarters here, Congress leader Pawan Khera said that the Prime Minister is giving away so much to his friend.
“You must have heard that saying- ‘Aam Ke Aam, Guthliyon Ke Dam’ which means double profit. The disclosure that I am making before you, in this, the mango trees and the land on which those trees are planted, all are being handed over to Adani as over 10 lakh trees, 1,050 acres of land.”
He said that 1,050 acres of land, 10 lakh mango, litchi, teak trees in Pirpainti, Bhagalpur are being given to Adani for 33 years at the rate of one rupee per year to set up a power plant.”
The Congress leader alleged that when the Prime Minister is visiting Bihar, some farmers, some villagers have been arrested, put under house arrest, confined to their homes so that they do not come out and protest.
“This is happening today, the Prime Minister is going there,” he said, adding that Bihar is not the only example, before this when elections were held in Maharashtra, a power plant, a big power project was given to Adani, Dharavi was also given and the power project in Jharkhand’s Godda.
He asserted that this is what is happening in Bihar.
“Arrangements are being made to steal votes, but Rahul Gandhi is also on the streets, Congress party is on the streets, India Alliance is on the streets, so it is possible that vote theft may not happen, we will not even let it happen. So it was decided that 1,050 acres of land should be given to Adani before leaving. This is a 2,400-megawatt project, that is, a project worth Rs 21,400 crore, which was announced in the budget… It was also announced in the Union Budget, but, then it was not told that it will be executed by a private company, then it was said that the government will set up a power plant there.,” he said.
He mentioned that the government said that it will not execute it. “Okay, it is the government’s decision. They privatized this entire project and said that a private party will implement it. The bidding took place, Adani got it in the bidding.”
“The story does not end here… the story is that a plant built on Bihar’s land, with Bihar’s money, electricity produced from Bihar’s coal is sold to the people of Bihar at Rs 6 per unit. Loot, double loot after loot… He is getting the benefit of being a friend of the Prime Minister. This is happening in Bihar and then slogans are given– ‘Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam’,” he alleged
Khera mentioned that farmers consider land as their mother and BJP is not ashamed to run a whole campaign around mother, but they put a price of one rupee on the land to which we treat as mother.
“They got signatures with pencil, got signatures forcefully, got signatures done by threatening and after that the signature was corrected with a pen, this is how land is being acquired there,” the Congress leader alleged.
We had made an exposure of 70 thousand crores which was also reflected in the CAG report, this is even bigger than that. These people sell the same electricity in Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh for 4 or 5 rupees. So, why this special rate for Bihar, 6.075 rupees… This is our question that when rate in Uttar Pradesh is almost 4 rupees and in Maharashtra, it is almost 3 rupees, then why does this double engine government increase the price in Bihar, he said.
He pointed out that this is Bihar is being looted to benefit their friend.
Targeting the BJP, he said that they take it from electoral bonds, from Chinese companies…
“We have seen everything. I do not consider a state like Bihar to be ‘Bimar’ state. It is not ‘Bimar’, it was not, it is being made ‘Bimar’. It is being made ‘Bimar’ in this way and is given the status of a ‘bimaru’ (I’ll) state. Then you will snatch land from a state like Bihar, take coal, cut trees, take land from people forcefully and then sell that electricity to the same people for Rs 6.075. What kind of justice is this?” Khera questioned.
