News Analysis India

Tag: Agri Laws 2020

  • Thursday’s event a rehearsal for January 26 tractor parade: Farmer leader

    By PTI
    CHANDIGARH: With thousands of tractors bedecked with tricolours and farmer outfits’ flag of myriad colours swamping the KMP Expressway on the outskirts of Delhi on Thursday, a prominent key leader dubbed the rally as a “rehearsal for the January 26 tractor parade”.

    “It was a rehearsal for the proposed January 26 tractor parade,” Bharti Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan) leader Shingara Singh Mann told PTI over the phone.

    He said farmers started their march from the Singhu and Tikri borders and drove towards the Kundli-Manesar-Palwal expressway in the morning and then they came back later.

    ALSO READ: Undeterred by cold weather, rains, protesting farmers warn to intensify stir further

    “The rally was peaceful and was a complete success,” he added.

    As farmers, especially youths owing allegiance to various farm bodies took part in a march, their tractors sported tricolour, flags of various farmers’ unions and banners mentioning ‘No Farmer No Food’.

    Farmers also shouted slogans against the Centre for not acceding to their demands.

    “We also want to give a message to the Centre through this rally that we will not return till it accepts our demands,” said a protesting farmer, adding it also shows farmers’ resolve for their fight against the farm legislations.

    ALSO READ: SC to hear pleas against new agri laws, all issues related to farmers protest on January 11

    Balraj Kundu, independent MLA from Meham in Haryana’s Rohtak district also participated in a tractor march at the KMP expressway.

    “If the government continues to remain adamant, farmers will take out a tractor parade in Delhi on January 26,” said Kundu while talking to reporters in Rohtak.

    Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee general secretary Sarwan Singh Pandher slammed the BJP-led government for not accepting their demands.

    ALSO READ: Agri laws: Wisconsin Speaker supports farmers’ protests; writes to Indian, US envoys

    He also accused the government of adopting “double standards” on this issue.

    “On one hand, the government is holding talks with farmer leaders and on the other, its ministers Narendra Singh Tomar and Piyush Goyal are saying these farm laws are in he interest of farmers,” said Pandher.

    Thousands of farmers, mostly from Haryana, Punjab and western Uttar Pradesh have been camping at three Delhi border points — Singhu, Tikri and Ghazipur for more than a month, demanding a repeal of the three farm laws and a legal guarantee for the minimum support price for their crops.

    ALSO EDITORIAL: Help farmers build viable cooperatives

    Meanwhile, the adequate security personnel were deployed by the Haryana police at KMP toll plaza in the wake of a tractor march.

  • Narendra Modi government has lost trust of entire farming community: Harsimrat Kaur Badal

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: A day before the government’s eighth round of talks with protesting farm unions, SAD leader and former Union Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal said the Centre has lost the trust of the entire farming community and Prime Minister Narendra Modi should directly talk to agitating farmers.

    Expressing her anguish over the pain of farmers, Badal, leader of the ruling BJP’s erstwhile ally, said, “It is strange that farmers are spending nights in open during the chilling winters and even then their demands are falling on deaf ears.”

    In an interview to PTI, Badal who resigned from Union Cabinet in September last year when the three farm bills were being passed in Lok Sabha, said what farmers have gone through in last six-seven weeks, is the same what she went through when she was a Union Minister.

    ALSO READ: Agri laws: Wisconsin Speaker supports farmers’ protests; writes to Indian, US envoys

    “…To avoid the situation which has arisen now and the protest, I kept pleading for months, whether it was in cabinet meetings or in direct meetings with top leaders of the central government that please listen to farmers before bringing these three bills as they are ‘annadaatas’ of the country, otherwise it would lead to agitations and protests. But my all pleas fell on to deaf ears,” she said.

    Asking who will be held responsible for deaths of farmers during the protest, Badal said the Centre has lost the trust of farmers across the country.

    “Farmers are dying at the doorstep of the central government while protesting for their demands. Who will be responsible for deaths of ‘annadaatas’ of the country?” Badal said.

    ALSO READ: SC to hear pleas against new agri laws, all issues related to farmers protest on January 11

    Talking about the ongoing meetings between protesting farmers and Centre, Badal said after seven rounds of meetings nothing concrete has come out.

    “After several rounds of meetings if ministers are unable to resolve the farmers’ issues then Prime Minister Narendra Modi should directly talk to protesting farmers,” Badal said.

    She also attacked the Congress-led Punjab government and state chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh and said he has failed to fulfill his responsibility as guardian of the state and its people.

    ALSO READ: Undeterred by cold weather, rains, protesting farmers warn to intensify stir further

    “Both the central and state governments are equal partners in this crime against farmers. While farmers were sitting on dharna, the Chief Minister of Punjab was having fun in his farmhouse. Captain Amarinder Singh has miserably failed to fulfil his responsibilities as chief minister of Punjab and as guardian of its people,” Badal said.

    Harsimrat Kaur Badal was Union Food Processing Minister in the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre and resigned when the bills were taken up for passage in Lok Sabha.

    Her husband and SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal had announced her resignation in the lower house while participating in the debate on the three farm bills.

    Days later, SAD also moved out of the ruling NDA breaking its decades-old alliance with the BJP.

  • AAP accuses Punjab CM Amarinder Singh of implementing farm laws, demands his resignation

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: Alleging that the Congress government in Punjab has implemented the contentious farm laws in the state, the Aam Aadmi Party on Wednesday demanded resignation of Chief Minister Amarinder Singh for “overt and open betrayal of the farmers”.

    Citing news reports about Punjab’s Minister of Food and Civil Supplies Bharat Bhushan Ashu’s comment that the Congress government has allowed farmers from elsewhere to sell their produce in the state, AAP’s Punjab co-incharge Raghav Chadha accused Singh of “lying to everyone”.

    “It is indeed sad to note that this year has begun on such a grim note with the biggest fraud and betrayal committed by the Congress and Amarinder Singh who have implemented the black farm laws in Punjab. The Aam Aadmi Party demands his resignation,” Chadha said.

    ALSO READ: Agri laws: Wisconsin Speaker supports farmers’ protests; writes to Indian, US envoys

    “With the backdoor implementation of the three black farm laws, Amarinder Singh has lied to everyone, he has betrayed not only the farmers of Punjab, but the fields of Punjab, the land of Punjab and the ‘annadaatas’ (food providers) of Punjab,” he said.

    Farmers from various parts of the country, mostly from Punjab, have been camping at different border points of Delhi for over a month now demanding repeal of the three agri laws, which were voted through in Parliament in September amid strong protests by opposition parties.

    ALSO READ: SC to hear pleas against new agri laws, all issues related to farmers protest on January 11

    Aam Aadmi Party have come out strongly in support of the protesting farmers.

    The three laws have been projected by the central government as major reforms in the agriculture sector that will remove the middlemen and allow farmers to sell anywhere in the country.

    However, the protesting farmers have expressed apprehension that the new laws would pave the way for eliminating the safety cushion of Minimum Support Price and do away with the mandi system, leaving them at the mercy of big corporates.

    ALSO READ: Undeterred by cold weather, rains, protesting farmers warn to intensify stir further

    The government has repeatedly asserted that the MSP and Mandi systems will stay and has accused the opposition of misleading the farmers.

  • Supreme Court seeks response of Centre on PIL against three farm laws

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court Wednesday sought response of the Centre on a PIL challenging the constitutional validity of newly enacted three farm laws on grounds including that Parliament lacked power to make legislations on the subject.

    The plea also raised questions over the validity of ‘the Constitution (3rd Amendment Act) of 1954′ which allegedly empowered the Centre to frame the controversial laws on agriculture.

    A bench headed by Chief Justice S A Bobde, while issuing notice to the Ministry of Law and Justice on the PIL of lawyer M L Sharma, said it would hear on January 11 all the pleas challenging the new farm laws as also the ones raising issues related to the ongoing farmers’ protest at Delhi borders.

    ALSO READ: Agri laws: Wisconsin Speaker supports farmers’ protests; writes to Indian, US envoys

    In a hearing conducted through video conferencing, the bench, also comprising Justices A S Bopanna and V Ramasubramanian, took note of the petition which also contended that the subject ‘agriculture’ has wrongly been put in the concurrent list in the Constitution by parliament in 1954.

    The bench also allowed the lawyer to amend his PIL in which he has also sought quashing of the three laws.

    ALSO READ: SC to hear pleas against new agri laws, all issues related to farmers protest on January 11

    Earlier on November 19, the bench had restored the PIL of Sharma which was dismissed on October 12 and he was asked to approach the High Court instead.

    The top court has already decided to hear pleas of RJD lawmaker from Rajya Sabha, Manoj Jha and DMK Rajya Sabha MP from Tamil Nadu, Tiruchi Siva, and one by Rakesh Vaishnav of Chhattisgarh Kisan Congress against the three laws — Farmers” (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020; Farmers” Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020 and The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act 2020.

  • Haryana Police uses teargas to stop farmers’ group from moving towards Delhi

    By PTI
    CHANDIGARH: Haryana Police on Sunday evening fired teargas canisters to thwart a march of a group of agitating farmers towards Delhi at Masani barrage in Rewari district.

    Farmers first broke police barricades put up near Bhudla Sangwari village and then started moving towards Delhi in the evening.

    They have been camping at the service lane of the Delhi-Jaipur highway for the past few days, police said.

    When the farmers’ group reached Masani barrage where the barricades were put up, police used teargas to disperse them.

    ALSO READ: Will burn copies of new farm laws on Lohri – Farmer leaders

    “We have stopped them (farmers) at Masani,” Rewari Superintendent of Police Abhishek Jorwal said over the phone.

    On December 31, a group of farmers had broken police barricades at the Shahjahanpur border with Rajasthan, trying to move towards the national capital.

    Police had then too resorted to teargas shelling as well as using water cannons to stop them.

    ALSO READ: To keep farmers’ spirit alive, women kabaddi tournament goes on despite rains at Singhu border

    A large number of farmers from Rajasthan, Haryana and some other places have been protesting on the Jaipur-Delhi highway for the past several days, demanding the repeal of new farm laws.

    They have been camping at the Rajasthan-Haryana border point after police had earlier stopped them from proceeding towards Delhi as part of their “Delhi Chalo” march against the new farm laws.

  • People stand with protesting farmers, PM Narendra Modi’s misconception will be cleared: Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot

    By PTI
    JAIPUR: Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Sunday said that the “misconception” of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah will get cleared as people of the country were with the farmers protesting in Delhi against the farm laws passed by the Centre.

    He said it is “height of insensitivity” of the Centre that even after 39 days of farmers protest, it is not paying any heed.

    The government believes that farmers will get tired and the issue will gradually meet an end.

    “Farmers are sensible that they are protesting peacefully. The feelings of people in six lakh villages are with the protesting farmers. Misconception of Modi ji and Shah ji will get cleared in the times to come,” Gehlot said here.

    The Congress organised a day-long protest on Sunday in support of farmers against the farm laws.

    Congress leader and former deputy CM Sachin Pilot also joined the protest organised by state Congress at Shaheed Smarak here.

    CM Gehlot said the Centre does not have the right to decide the fate of farmers.

    He said the “fascist” government at the Centre does not believe in democracy and wants to destroy the country.

    They are working to divide Hindu and Muslims and their intention is not right, Gehlot said.

    He said that this time the government has messed up with farmers, who are wise enough and no one is instigating them.

    The situation is serious so Congress wants to give a message that each party worker is with farmers and will join the protests with them if it is necessitated, he added.

    Congress state president Govind Singh Dotasra said the Central government was not paying heed to farmers as it was working to give benefit to the big industrialists.

    He said the NDA government in its previous term had to withdraw a land acquisition bill owing to protests and in the same manner the government will have to take back the farm laws.

    Dotasra said the party will keep supporting farmers untill the new laws are not taken back.

    Congress leader Pilot said the Centre enacted the farm laws in an “autocratic manner”.

    The CM advocated that farmers should get more than the fair price for their produce.

    The Centre should withdraw the farm laws and if supporting farmers is politics, then Congress will continue to do it.

  • On eve of talks with farmers, Narendra Singh Tomar meets Rajnath Singh to discuss govt strategy to end deadlock

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: A day before the crucial seventh round of talks between the Centre and protesting farmer unions, Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar met Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday and discussed the government strategy to resolve the current crisis at the earliest, sources said.

    Tomar discussed with Singh “all possible options” to find a “middle path” to resolve the crisis, sources added.

    Singh, who served as agriculture minister in the erstwhile Atal Bihari Vajpayee cabinet, has emerged as a key troubleshooter and is working mostly behind the scenes on this issue.

    ALSO READ: Will burn copies of new farm laws on Lohri – Farmer leaders

    Protesting farmers who have been camping at Delhi borders for the last 39 days braving bone-chilling cold and now rains have threatened to intensify their protest if their two major demands — repeal of the three new farm laws and legal backing for the minimum support price (MSP) — are not accepted by the government in the January 4 meeting.

    Rains since Saturday night led to waterlogging at the agitation venues, but the unions asserted that “we will not move from here until our demands are met”.

    After five rounds of inconclusive talks, the government and 40 farmer unions reached some common ground during the sixth round of negotiations on December 30 to resolve protesting farmers’ concerns over rise in power tariff and penalties for stubble burning, but the two sides remained deadlocked over the main contentious issues of the repeal of the three farm laws and a legal guarantee for MSP.

    ALSO READ: To keep farmers’ spirit alive, women kabaddi tournament goes on despite rains at Singhu border

    On January 1, Tomar had told PTI that the government is hopeful of a “positive outcome” at its next meeting with farmers’ unions on January 4 but refrained from predicting whether the seventh round of talks will be the last one.

    Asked whether he expects the January 4 meeting to be the last one, the minister said, “I cannot say for sure now. I am not an astrologer. I am hopeful that whatever decision would be arrived at (in the meeting) will be in the interest of the country and of the farmers.”

    Last week, protesting farmer unions issued an “ultimatum” that they will march into Delhi with a “tractor parade” on the Republic Day if their demands are not met in the next round of talks.

    ALSO READ: Rains, waterlogging cause inconvenience to farmers protesting at Delhi borders

    “The farmers’ movement delivered an ultimatum to the Government of India and announced that farmers will march into Delhi on January 26,” Sankyukta Kisan Morcha, an umbrella body of around 40 protesting unions, had said in a statement.

    Thousands of farmers have been protesting at various borders of the national capital for more than a month demanding repeal of the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, Farmers Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act.

    Enacted in September 2020, the government has presented these laws as major farm reforms and aimed at increasing farmers’ income, but protesting farmers have raised concerns that these legislations would weaken the MSP and mandi systems and leave them at the mercy of big corporates.

    ALSO READ: Uttarakhand farmers start free bus service to Delhi protest site

    The government has maintained these apprehensions are misplaced and has ruled out repealing the laws.

    While several opposition parties and people from other walks of life have come out in support of the farmers, some farmer groups have also met Agriculture Minister Tomar over the last few weeks to extend their support for the three laws.

  • Three more protesting farmers die at Delhi border

    By PTI
    CHANDIGARH: Three more farmers, who were part of the protests at the Delhi borders against the Centre’s new farm laws, have died, police said on Sunday.

    One of the farmers died of cardiac arrest, another was suffering from fever while the cause of the death of the third farmer could only be ascertained after post-mortem, they added.

    The deceased were identified as Shamsher Singh (around 45 years of age), a resident of Lidhra village in Punjab’s Sangrur district, Jashandeep Singh (18), a resident of Chauke village in Punjab’s Bathinda district, and Jagbir Singh (60), a resident of Jind in Haryana, the police said.

    ALSO READ: Will burn copies of new farm laws on Lohri – Farmer leaders

    Shamsher was part of the protests at the Singhu border while Jagbir was participating in the agitation at the Tikri border.

    Shamsher had complained of chest pain on Sunday morning, a police official said, adding that the cause of his death could only be established after post-mortem.

    Jagbir passed away at the Tikri border, an official of the Bahadurgarh police station said.

    ALSO READ: To keep farmers’ spirit alive, women kabaddi tournament goes on despite rains at Singhu border

    He died of a heart attack, the police official said, adding that the body was handed over to his family after post-mortem.

    Jashandeep died on Saturday evening, the police said, adding that he had gone to support the agitating farmers at the Tikri border.

    Jashandeep was suffering from fever and was taken to the PGIMS, Rohtak, where he breathed his last.

    ALSO READ: Rains, waterlogging cause inconvenience to farmers protesting at Delhi borders

    Farmers from different parts of the country, including Haryana and Punjab, have been camping at various border points of Delhi for more than a month now to demand a repeal of the three recent farm laws of the Centre.

    Meanwhile, senior Congress leader and former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda urged the Centre to accept the farmers’ demand.

    Talking to the media in Sonipat, he said the situation has become “worrisome” while pointing out that some of the protesting farmers have died in the last 24 hours.

    ALSO READ: Uttarakhand farmers start free bus service to Delhi protest site

    Hooda urged the government to scrap the farm laws without further delay.

  • Will burn copies of new farm laws on Lohri: Farmer leaders

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: Farmer leaders protesting at Delhi’s Singhu border on Sunday said they will celebrate the festival of Lohri on January 13 by burning copies of newly introduced agriculture laws.

    They also said they will observe the birth anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose on January 23 as ‘Azad Hind Kisan Diwas’ “We will celebrate the Lohri festival on January 13 by burning the copies of farm laws,” farmers’ leader Manjeet Singh Rai said.

    Rai also urged people to hold protests in support of farmers across India from January 6 to 20.

    Lohri is mostly celebrated in north India, marking the beginning of the spring season.

    Bonfires are a special characteristic of the festival Another farmers’ leader Onkar Singh said, “Today is the 37th day of our protest. The government should leave its stubbornness. In these conditions, the farmers, including elders, have been sitting on protest, but the government is not concerned about it.”

    Braving the cold, thousands of farmers, mainly from Punjab and Haryana, are protesting at various borders of the national capital for more than a month against the three farm laws.

    The farmers’ leaders said they are ready for Tuesday’s meeting with the government.

    ALSO READ: To keep farmers’ spirit alive, women kabaddi tournament goes on despite rains at Singhu border

    The next round of talks between the government and protesting farmer unions is scheduled to be held on January 4, Tuesday.

    On Friday last, the unions had announced that they would have to take firm steps if the meeting fails to resolve the deadlock.

    ALSO READ: Rains, waterlogging cause inconvenience to farmers protesting at Delhi borders

    “As the temperature is decreasing, we have tried to arrange the waterproof tents. We are also trying to arrange the blankets and warm water. Arrangements for 1,000 women have been made near the KFC with a tent and the mattresses,” farmers’ leader Harmeet Singh Kadian said.

    The protesting farmer unions on Saturday had said they will take out a tractor parade towards Delhi on January 26, when the country will celebrate Republic Day if their demands are not met.

    ALSO READ: Uttarakhand farmers start free bus service to Delhi protest site

    British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will be in the national capital on January 26 as the chief guest at the Republic Day parade, which will be held at Rajpath.

    In a statement, the All India Kisan Sangharsh Coordination Committee (AIKSCC) said the success of Tuesday’s talks depends entirely on the repeal of three farm laws.

  • To keep farmers’ spirit alive, women kabaddi tournament goes on despite rains at Singhu border

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: The Singhu border on the outskirts of Delhi, which has been a protest site for farmers for over a month, turned into a kabaddi ground for a women’s tournament on Sunday with rains not dampening the spirit.

    A total of 12 women teams participated in the tournament, which started around 11 am.

    Sukhwinder Singh (55), joint Secretary of Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee Punjab, who hails from Tarn Taran district of Punjab, said the women themselves came forward to participate in the tournament.

    ALSO READ: Uttarakhand farmers start free bus service to Delhi protest site

    “Teams from different states have come forward and asked us that they want to organise a kabaddi tournament. We have planned different activities for each day to keep people engaged at Singhu border,” he said.

    The winning team will get Rs 2,100 and the runner up Rs 1,100.

    The prize has been announced by people who have donated the amount, Sukhwinder said.

    On Sunday morning, heavy rains lashed parts of the national capital leading to waterlogging at various places and also affecting the protest sites.

    However, the tournament was not affected by the rains.

    ALSO READ: Rains, waterlogging cause inconvenience to farmers protesting at Delhi borders

    Jagbir Singh from Jind district of Haryana and head coach at the tournament said the majority of players are college students.

    “The teams from Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi have participated in the tournament. We all have come here to support the farmers. The tournament will be concluded today only. There are also some national and international players,” he said.

    The farmers, who have been camping at the site, cheered for the players as the tournament was on.

    “I have played at the state as well the national level from Delhi. The match was good though we could not win it and made to another round. My family was very supportive and they allowed me play the match here,” Ritika Dalal, one of the players, said.

    The matches were being played on the temporary turf.

    Narender Kumar, a kabaddi coach from Rohatk, said that he received a message regarding the tournament on WhatsApp.

    “I received a message on WhatsApp yesterday regarding the matches. It was mentioned that the only girls will play, following which I took my team of 10 girls, including my twin daughters, and reached here this morning. It is a knockout tournament and you have to win each and every match. My team lost by two points but they performed really well,” Kumar said.

    Thousands of farmers, mostly from Delhi’s neighbouring states Punjab and Haryana, have stayed put at the national capital’s border points since late November to protest against the new farm laws.