CPI today demanded early passage of Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bill by Parliament and gave a call for Jharkhand shutdown on July 29 in protest against Tuesday's firing incident at Pagar village of the district.
"There should not be any attempt to acquire land anywhere in the country till the bill is passed by Parliament," CPI state unit secretary and former MP Bhubaneswar Prasad Mehta said here.
He was talking to reporters after staging a day-long demonstration near the office of Hazaribagh Deputy Commissioner against the police firing demanding Rs 25 lakh as compensation to the family of the villager who died in the firing incident and government job to the dependents.
"Once the bill is passed, the beneficiaries will get more than the compensation being given by the companies," he said.
"Jharkhand Disom Party, Forward Block and RSP have also supported the bandh call. Tomorrow we have invited other regional parties to solicit support," Mehta said.
The people of Keredari block comprising 18 villages with about 2000 beneficiaries have refused to take nothing less than Rs 15 lakh compensation from the NTPC, which reportedly paid to the villagers in the neighbouring Pakri-Barwadih in Barkagaon block.
Pagar village, where the police firing took place on July 23 claiming one life and injuring five others, is one of the villages in Keredari block.
