Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today demanded that the amended Land Acquisition Bill be withdrawn in favour of the original 2013 legislation even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi reached out to parties to end the deadlock over the Bill.


"The state government opposes any attempt to dilute, nullify or tamper with the letter and spirit of the 2013 Act in its original form," Kumar said while addressing the second meeting of the Governing Council of NITI Aayog in New Delhi which was convened to discuss the land acquisition Bill.


Nitish said "substitution of the term 'private company' by term 'private entity', removal of the consent clause, exemption from social impact assessment and special provisions for safeguarding food security in the process of land acquisition and relaxation in the time limit for return of the unutilised acquired land are not in public interest."


Nitish was among 16 chief ministers who attended a meeting of the rejigged plan panel NITI Ayog's governing council, chaired by the Prime Minister.