Cong workers protest land ordinance

Hundreds of Congress workers on Friday attempted to picket Hotel Lalit Ashok, where the BJP national executive meeting was taking place, protesting the land acquisition ordinance of the Centre.

The Congress workers gathered in large numbers at the party office on Race Course Road and took out a procession till the hotel. They raised slogans against the Centre and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying he was hell-bent on implementing the controversial Act only to benefit corporates. Karnataka Pradesh Youth Congress president Rizwan Arshad said the Modi government was following anti-farmer policy. The ordinance should be withdrawn immediately, he added.

Arshad said Modi failed in fulfilling the promise of bringing back black money . The BJP had assured before the Lok Sabha polls that it would deposit Rs 15 lakh in every account holder’s name, if voted to power. The party had failed to fulfil such promises, he charged. They displayed a huge cheque of Rs 15 lakh in the name of Modi to mock the assurance that has not been fulfilled.

The police had put barricades and prevented the protesters before they could reach the hotel. The protesters exchanged heated words with the police. As a precautionary measure, the police took the protesters into preventive custody and released them later.

Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha and Bhoo Swadheena Masoode Virodhi Horata Samithi staged separate protests in the City against the land acquistion ordinance.