The Congress, NCP and SP members in the joint select committee of Parliament on the Land Acquisition Bill have decided not to participate in the meeting of the panel.

The members sent a letter to the chairman of the panel, SS Ahluwalia, that they fail to see the purpose and meaning of the joint committee after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s announcement in his radio address Mann Ki Baat that the government is withdrawing all amendments moved to the Act.

They said they will participate in the meetings only if the Prime Minister or the Rural Development Minister Chaudhary Birender Singh makes a statement in both the Houses of Parliament on the Mann ki baat commitment.

A Congress member said the meeting, scheduled on Thursday was cancelled after Ahluwalia received the letter.

Ahluwalia, however, told BusinessLine that the decision to postpone the meeting was taken much before he got the letter.

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