AAP slams BJP's e-Bhoomi policy in Haryana, calls it scheme to loot farmers' land

UPDATED: Aug 19, 2025 18:29 IST

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has launched a fierce attack on the Haryana government’s recently rolled out “e-Bhoomi” land pooling policy, alleging it is a backdoor attempt to dispossess small farmers for the benefit of corporates and BJP leaders.

Addressing a press conference at the Chandigarh Press Club on Monday, AAP’s national media in-charge Anurag Dhanda described the scheme as “a conspiracy to loot farmers’ land.”

According to Dhanda, more than 35,000 acres of farmland are likely to be acquired under the policy. But nearly 95% of farmers, who own less than 10 acres, have been left out of any meaningful participation. He claimed that middlemen have been empowered to buy land at artificially low circle rates from these small farmers, only to transfer it to private developers at much higher prices.

“Farmers will neither retain ownership nor get any share in the projects that come up on their land. They will only receive one-time compensation at circle rate, which is three to four times lower than the actual market value,” Dhanda said.

Dhanda accused the government of twisting provisions of the 2013 Land Acquisition Act, which stipulates compensation at four times the market rate. Instead, the Haryana model caps it at three times the circle rate — and even that, he argued, is not assured.

He also flagged a cash incentive of Rs 3,000 per acre being offered to middlemen for closing land deals, calling it a state-sponsored encouragement of exploitation.

SMALL FARMERS HIT THE HARDEST

Under the scheme, large landowners with holdings above 10 acres can choose how much land to surrender. In contrast, smaller farmers must give up their entire plots. Once paid at circle rate, Dhanda said, they will never be able to purchase land again.

“Even landless labourers, who depend entirely on these fields for livelihood, have been ignored. There is no rehabilitation plan for them,” he added.

Dhanda questioned the speed with which the policy was introduced. He alleged that several BJP ministers and close aides of Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini had already bought land in targeted areas at throwaway prices in the last two years. These parcels, he claimed, would now multiply in value under the garb of industrial or residential development.

AAP has demanded that the government publish land purchase records of the last two years to expose who stands to benefit.

Taking a swipe at the opposition, Dhanda recalled how BJP’s Anil Vij had once opposed farmland acquisitions for an industrial township in Ambala in 2011–12, but has now remained silent as 5,000 acres in the district are being acquired. He also accused Congress leaders, including Bhupinder Singh Hooda, of deliberately staying quiet.

“This unholy BJP-Congress alliance is crushing Haryana’s farmers. AAP will take this fight to every village until the policy is rolled back,” Dhanda declared.

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