Govt Keen to Push Bills on Food Security, Land Acquisition

New Delhi: After the big-bang reforms, law minister Salman Khurshid indicated government's keenness to push bills on food security and land acquisition, insisting that even Mamata Banerjee will not be able to oppose them.

He maintained that "the bills drive a deft political balance between populism and reforms".

"The draft (food security) bill is being given the final touches by the Cabinet. This will ensure that poor will have their stomachs full. Nobody will sleep hungry. And when the law comes into force, people will get good food at low prices. 70 percent of India will come into the ambit. We want to see which party can oppose the food bill," Khurshid said.

The proposed Food Security Bill is estimated to cost the exchequer at least Rs 1.19 lakh crore in way of subsidy.

"We will also table the Land Acquisition Bill. This was (Trinamool Congress chief) Mamata's agenda at Singur. Can she oppose the Bill now? We are confident that SP and other allies will back this bill. So there's no cause of concern about numbers in Parliament," Khurshid said in an interview on Aaj Tak channel.

The minister also said the National Rural Health Mission (NHRM) will very soon be extended to the urban class.

Rebutting talk of running a minority government, he said "these Bills will have political consensus — driving a deft political balance between populism and reforms".