News Analysis India

Tag: Farmers Protest

  • Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar takes ‘khoon ki kheti’ jibe at Congress

    By Express News Service
    NEW DELHI: As the opposition in Rajya Sabha called for withdrawal of farm laws, Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar on Friday said that the government’s willingness to make amendments in the three legislations doesn’t mean there are flaws in them.

    He also took a dig at the Congress, accusing them of indulging in politics of ‘blood’ — the remark which was expunged later.

    Inside the House, speaking during Motion of Thanks on the President’s address, Tomar said that farmers from one particular state are misinformed about the laws and the agitation is being led by unions from Punjab.

    ​ALSO READ | Global personalities reiterate their support to farmers despite Centre censure

    “Government’s offer to make amendments in the laws does not mean there are any shortcomings in them. Farmer unions and opposition parties have failed to point out a single flaw in three new farm laws,” he said in the Upper House.

    Tomar said Congress was trying to politicise the issue. “Duniya janti hai pani se kheti hoti hai. Khoon se kheti sirf Congress he kar sakte hai, BJP khoon se kheti nahi kar sakti (the world knows water is required for farming. Only Congress can do farming using blood. BJP cannot do this),”  the minister said.

    Many opposition parties have appealed to the Centre to withdraw the three laws and not make it a prestige issue. They have also termed the laws as ‘kala kanoon’. 

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    “We are not standing on prestige. We have been asking what is kaala in this law and no one is forthcoming. We have been talking with farmer unions for a long time,” Tomar said.

    “They have our proposal and they are discussing it among themselves. We are expecting a reply from them soon, after which we will look into it and sit with them to find a solution.” 

    ​On the opposition and farmer unions allegations that the Centre did not consult anybody before bringing in the laws, he said that the Centre followed due procedure and consulted the states and farmers.

  • Centre may agree to opposition demand for separate discussion on agriculture laws

    By Express News Service
    NEW DELHI: The Lok Sabha witnessed logjam even on Friday with the Opposition parties persisting with their demand of repealing the farm laws, leading to repeated adjournments. 

    Faced with the prospect of being unable to fulfil the convention of holding discussion on the President’s address to the joint sitting of the two Houses of the Parliament, the government is likely to buy peace and agree to a separate discussion on the farmers’ protests with the Opposition.

    With only five days left for the conclusion of the first half of Budget session, during which it is a matter of prestige for the government to complete the discussion and pass the motion of thanks to the President’s address, the government has little choice.

    ALSO READ | LS adjourned till February 8 as opposition members continue with protest over farm laws

    Sources indicated that one day next week will be marked for a separate discussion on farm laws.

    The government has been insisting that the Opposition speak on the protests in the motion of thanks. The Opposition has been unyielding on their demand for a separate discussion on the subject. Rajya Sabha, on the other hand, has completed the discussion on the motion of thanks.

    On Friday, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Arjun Meghwal read out the agenda for the business of the House for the next week, which included motion of thanks, Budget discussion, and a number of legislative proposals, including the Delhi Special Laws (Amendment) Bill.

    ​ALSO READ | Global personalities reiterate their support to farmers despite Centre censure

    Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla is learnt to have continued to speak to the floor leaders of the political parties to find a breakthrough. He will be meeting the leaders of the parties again on Monday before the House convenes for the day.

    UN rights body calls for max restraint

    The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on Friday called on both the Indian government and the demonstrators to exercise maximum restraint.

    “We call on the authorities and protesters to exercise maximum restraint in ongoing #FarmersProtests. The rights to peaceful assembly & expression should be protected both offline & online,” it tweeted. “It’s crucial to find equitable solutions with due respect to #HumanRights for all.” 

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  • Global personalities reiterate their support to farmers despite Centre censure

    By Express News Service
    NEW DELHI: Global personalities, US Vice-President Kamala Harris niece Meena Harris, refused to bow down to pressure and online trolls and reiterated their support to the farmers’ agitation in India. “I won’t be intimidated, and I won’t be silenced,” Meena tweeted.

    After a photojournalist shared a photo of people from the United Hindu Front holding photographs of Harris before burning it at a demonstration in Delhi, Harris shared the tweet and wrote, “I spoke out in support of human rights for Indian farmers, and look at the response.”

    ALSO READ | Farmers’ stir: UN Human Rights calls for ‘maximum restraint’ by govt, protesters

    Former adult star Mia Khalifa, who had tweeted about the protests earlier, also came out with a new message. “Confirming I have in fact regained consciousness, and would like to thank you for your concern, albeit unnecessary. Still standing with the farmers, though.”

    This comes after there were pictures of demonstrators holding placards ‘Mia Khalifa regains consciousness’ at the same demonstration in Delhi. The international chorus grew after pop star Rihanna tweeted an article on internet suspension at the protest sites. 

    The Ministry of External Affairs had said, in its statement, that “vested interest groups have also tried to mobilise international support against the reformist (agriculture) legislation,” which was passed by “parliament of India after a full debate and discussion.” 

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  • Farmers’ stir: UN Human Rights calls for ‘maximum restraint’ by govt, protesters

    By Online Desk
    The United Nations Human Rights on Friday called for exercising ‘maximum restraint’ by the government of India and the protestors during the ongoing farmers’ stir.

    Amid the mobile internet service ban in Delhi borders, the rights’ body said that peaceful assembly & expression should be protected both offline and online.

    Taking to Twitter the body wrote, “#India: We call on the authorities and protesters to exercise maximum restraint in ongoing #FarmersProtests. The rights to peaceful assembly & expression should be protected both offline & online. It’s crucial to find equitable solutions with due respect to #HumanRights for all”

    #India: We call on the authorities and protesters to exercise maximum restraint in ongoing #FarmersProtests. The rights to peaceful assembly & expression should be protected both offline & online. It’s crucial to find equitable solutions with due respect to #HumanRights for all.
    — UN Human Rights (@UNHumanRights) February 5, 2021

  • Budget is another ‘assault’ on farmers, they will have to pay more for petrol-diesel: Rahul Gandhi

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday attacked the government over its Budget, saying it was another “assault” on farmers after the farm laws as they will have to spend more for petrol-diesel and no financial assistance will be given to them.

    मोदी के ‘मित्र’ केंद्रित बजट में-किसान को पेट्रोल-डीज़ल के ज़्यादा दाम देने होंगे और कोई आर्थिक मदद भी नहीं मिलेगी।तीन कृषि-विरोधी क़ानूनों से कुचले जाने के बाद देश के अन्नदाता पर एक और वार!
    — Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) February 5, 2021

    “In Modi’s crony-centric budget, farmers will have to pay more for petrol-diesel and no financial assistance will be given to them. After being crushed by the three anti-agriculture laws, another assault on the country’s ‘annadaatas’,” Gandhi said in a tweet in Hindi.

    Modi’s crony centric budget means-Jawans facing Chinese aggression in extreme conditions will get no support.India’s defenders betrayed.
    — Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) February 5, 2021

    Earlier, in another tweet, the former Congress chief said, “Modi’s crony centric budget means — Jawans facing Chinese aggression in extreme conditions will get no support. India’s defenders betrayed.” Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday presented the budget for 2021-22 in the Lok Sabha from a tablet, instead of a conventional paper document, the first paperless budget since Independence.

    In his first reaction to the budget on Monday, Gandhi had alleged that the Narendra Modi government plans to handover the country’s assets to crony capitalists.

    The BJP leaders had lauded the budget for its focus on a number of measures, including substantial allocation for healthcare sector, capital expenditure, tax exemption for senior citizens and incentives for start-ups among others.

  • Government’s approach towards farmers’ stir adversarial and confrontionist, say 75 ex-civil servants

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: The central government’s approach towards the farmers’ protest against the three new farm laws has been an adversarial and a confrontationist one from the very beginning, a group of former civil servants said in an open letter written on Friday.

    The letter signed by 75 former civil servants, including Najeeb Jung, Julio Riberio and Aruna Roy, who are part of the Constitutional Conduct Group (CCG) also said that the apolitical farmers are being treated like “an irresponsible opposition to be derided, demonised and defeated”.

    They said that “the repeated, albeit unsuccessful, attempts to polarise the agitation along regional, communal and other lines are also reprehensible”. “Such an approach can never lead to a solution,” the letter stated.

    If the government of India is indeed interested in an amicable solution, instead of proposing half-hearted steps such as putting the laws on hold for 18 months, it can withdraw the legislations and think of other possible solutions, given the basic constitutional position that the subject of agriculture is in the State list in the Constitution, it said.

    ALSO READ| ‘No chakka jam in Delhi’: Farmers’ body asks protestors to be peaceful during highway blockade

    “We in the CCG have, on 11 December 2020, issued a statement supporting the stand of the farmers. All that has happened since has made us feel even more strongly that great injustice has been done and continues to be done to the farmers,” the letter said.

    The former civil servants urged the government of India (GoI) to take “remedial action” on an issue which has caused “so much turmoil in the country over the past several months”. “We reassert and reiterate our support to the agitating farmers while expecting the government to provide a healing touch and to solve the issue to the satisfaction of the stakeholders,” the letter said.

    The former civil servants said that they note certain developments with “grave concern”. “The approach of the government of India towards the farmers’ protest has been an adversarial and confrontationist one from the very beginning, treating the apolitical farmers like an irresponsible opposition to be derided, demonised and defeated,” the letter said.

    The former bureaucrats said they were “particularly concerned about the developments that took place on 26 January 2021, Republic Day, the efforts to lay the blame on the farmers for the disruption of law and order on that day and the events that have followed”.

    Farmers, protesting against the laws at border points of Delhi for over two months, took out a tractor rally on January 26. But some farmers violated the designated routes and reached the Red Fort. Some of them hoisted religious flags there.

    ALSO READ| Centre held consultations with states, farmers before bringing farm laws: Agriculture Minister Tomar

    The former civil servants questioned as to why sedition charges were made out against certain journalists and a Member of Parliament of an opposition party on flimsy grounds, solely for certain tweets posted by them when the factual position was not clear.

    “The registration of the same case with very similar First Information Reports in various states run by the BJP smacks of vindictiveness and seems to be aimed at muzzling legitimate, democratic protests against the policies of the GoI,” the letter said.

    It said that “holding or presenting a view against the government or reporting different versions given by different people about an incident can, under no law, be held as an act against the nation”. “It bears repetition to say that a protest against a policy or action of the government is not an act of sedition against the nation,” the letter said.

    Withdrawal of cases against the farmers and tweeters, including the journalists, withdrawal of cases against all except miscreants who engaged in unlawful activities and stopping the vicious and sickening propaganda of calling the farmers Khalistanis are the minimum requirement for a conducive atmosphere for resumption of talks, it said.

    Thousands of farmers, mostly from Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, have been protesting at Delhi’s borders demanding the rollback of the Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020 and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.

    The letter has also been signed by former IAS officers Najeeb Jung, Aruna Roy, Jawhar Sircar and Aurobindo Behera, ex-IFS officers KB Fabian and Aftab Seth, former IPS officers Julio Riberio and AK Samata among others.

  • Farmers defy govt order, gather in thousands for Mahapanchayat in UP’s Shamli 

    Express News Service
    LUCKNOW: Despite the denial of permission to hold a Mahapanchayat, thousands of farmers on Friday converged in the Shamli district of western UP to be a part of the planned event against the three newly-enacted farm laws.

    The congregation took place at Swami Kalyan Dev Kanya Gurukul at Bhainswal village. As songs of protests were blaring out of mics, one of them implored Prime Minister Narendra Modi to listen to the voice of farmers. The event was organised by the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) and Samajwadi Party (SP).

    The district administration in Shamli had cited a Covid-spurred restriction on large gatherings until April and reports of possible unruly behaviour, vandalism and violence by the farmers while denying permission. However, the organisers remained adamant and went ahead with their initial plans.

    Addressing the crowd, RLD vice president and Mahapanchayat chief guest Jayant Chaudhury trained the gun at the Centre and accused the ruling party of hatching the conspiracy of Republic Day violence on the roads of Delhi.

    “The Delhi Police chose to remain a mute spectator to the acts of vandalism by the rowdy elements on January 26 in Delhi,” said Chaudhury, while exhorting the farmers to vote against the BJP in the next elections if it failed to address the issues plaguing the farmers.

    Rakesh Tikait, the national spokesman of Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU), opted to remain away from the Mahapanchayat saying his outfit had nothing to do with the Shamli meet. But his brother Narendra Tikait attended it in his personal capacity.

    ALSO READ | Farmers denied nod to hold mahapanchayat in UP’s Shamli on Friday

    Jayant Chaudhury also accused the Central government of treading the path of rigidity and arrogance. He advised the Modi government not to make it an issue of prestige and repeal the laws keeping the farmers’ sentiment in mind.

    With an eye on 2022 UP Assembly elections, Chaudhury used the occasion to strike a political chord with the gathering saying that in the House, the representatives of farmers had become lesser in number. “More farmer representatives will have to be sent to the Assembly and for this more farmer leaders would have to be voted for,” he said.

    Chaudhury, in fact, considers his party (RLD) as the messiah of farmers in western UP. However, in the last 2017 assembly elections, the RLD could win just one seat of 131 it had contested getting just 1.8% votes.

    Ironically, the lone RLD MLA Sahendra Singh Chauhan Ramala, who had won from Chhaprauli in Bhaghpat, the bastion of Chaudhurys, also joined the ruling BJP in 2018. At present, RLD has no presence in UP Assembly.

    There was a huge deployment of the police force at the Mahapanchayat. SP Sukirti Madhav said the heavy bandobust was done to avert any untoward incident.  Besides several columns of PAC, senior police officials of the division and the district were present on the site.

    The senior district administration officials including ADM Arvind Kumar Singh, SDM Shamli Sandeep Kumar Aurav, ASP Rajesh Srivastava, and CO, Thana Bhawan, Amit Saxena too stayed put at the venue.

    Groups of farmers defiantly headed to Shamli on Friday morning and many were seen driving towards the grounds on their tractors with chants of ‘Inquilab Zindabad’.·

  • Mia Khalifa reiterates support for farmers protest amid criticism

    By PTI
    MUMBAI: Former adult star Mia Khalifa on Friday said she is “still standing with the farmers” after her comments, criticising the treatment being meted to the protesting farmers, drew sharp reactions.

    A tweet by international pop star Rihanna on Tuesday, triggered a wave of support for protesting farmers with a number of global celebrities, activists and politicians expressing their solidarity with them.

    Khalifa too had shared a tweet.

    The government had criticised the tweets by Rihanna and other celebrities, saying facts on the issue must be ascertained before people rushing to comment on the issue, calling it “neither accurate nor responsible”.

    Khalifa, 27, took to Twitter again and shared a picture from a protest by a group of people, holding placards and posters of her, Rihanna and Swedish teen climate activist Greta Thunberg.

    Confirming I have in fact regained consciousness, and would like to thank you for your concern, albeit unnecessary. Still standing with the farmers, though pic.twitter.com/ttZnYeVLRP
    — Mia K. (@miakhalifa) February 4, 2021

    One of the placards read, “Mia Khalifa regains consciousness.”

    She quipped about the gaffe and wrote, “Confirming I have in fact regained consciousness, and would like to thank you for your concern, albeit unnecessary. Still standing with the farmers, though.”

    Khalifa had earlier criticised the internet shutdown at protest sites and tweeted, “What in the human rights violations is going on?!” In a subsequent tweet on Wednesday, the Lebanese American artiste had also slammed those who called farmers “paid actors.”

    What in the human rights violations is going on?! They cut the internet around New Delhi?! #FarmersProtest pic.twitter.com/a5ml1P2ikU
    — Mia K. (@miakhalifa) February 3, 2021

    “‘Paid actors’ huh? Quite the casting director, I hope they’re not overlooked during awards season. I stand with the farmers. #FarmersProtest,” she had written.

    Meena Harris, an American lawyer and niece of US Vice President Kamala Harris, actress Amanda Cerni, singers Jay Sean and Dr Zeus and Hollywood star John Cusack have also voiced their support to the protesting farmers.

    Tens of thousands of farmers have been protesting at three border points on the outskirts of Delhi demanding a complete repeal of the three farm laws.

  • FIR against farmers’ family for allgedly insulting national flag

    By PTI
    PILIBHIT: The mother and brother of a farmer, who died in a road accident near the Ghazipur protest site, have been booked along with another person for allegedly insulting the national flag after a video of his last rites here showed the body draped in the Tricolour, police said Friday.

    According to the flag code of India, draping the Tricolour in a civilian funeral is an offence.

    The farmer had gone to the farmers’ protest site on the Delhi-Uttar Pradesh border and died in an accident near there, police said.

    ​ALSO READ | India compares Red Fort incident with Capitol violence as US flags internet cut

    “Baljindra, a resident of Bari Bujhia village in Sehramau area had gone to participate in the farmers’ agitation on January 23 with his friends. He died in a mishap on January 25 and is body was kept in a mortuary as that of an unidentified person. His family members came to know about the incident on February 2 and they brought the body here,” Superintendent of Police, Jai Prakash Yadav, said.

    “The family members covered the body with the national flag like that of a martyr and took it for last rites on Thursday. The video of the last rites went viral on social media after which an FIR was registered against Baljindra’s mother Jasvir Kaur, brother Gurvinder and one unidentified,” the SP said.

    Thousands of farmers are camping at Delhi borders since November demanding that the Centre take back the three agri laws enacted last September and guarantee minimum support price for crops.

    The Centre has maintained that the laws are pro-farmer.

    ALSO WATCH:

  • BSP says Centre taking more efforts against farmers than on Indo-Pak borders, demands repeal of farm laws

    By ANI
    NEW DELHI: Bahujan Samaj Party Rajya Sabha MP Satish Chandra Misra on Friday slammed the Centre and alleged that the Centre had adopted an oppressive approach towards the ongoing farmers’ agitation against the three farm laws. He also urged the Centre to shun its ego and repeal the farm laws.

    Speaking during the ongoing discussion on the motion of thanks on the President’s address, the BSP leader said, “The BJP government has deployed jawans, allowed the use of water cannons and tear gas against farmers, blocked food supplies, water, even the toilets. They didn’t think even once that women were also present amongst protestors. This is what a gross violation of human rights is.”

    Misra alleged that farmers have been termed as anti-nationals and terrorists. “Remember, they have nothing to lose so you can’t suppress their voices,” he added.

    “The government has embedded spiked on roads, dug up trenches to deter the protestors. It seems like they are putting more efforts against farmers than on even the Indo-Pak borders. They have not dug up trenches for farmers, but for themselves,” he said.

    “Farmers are in fear that they will lose their land, and rightly so. You are selling Railways, Oil, Gas, even Ports. Forget private banks, the talk of selling even government banks is on. The way you sold stakes of LIC into the hands of private players, there is growing apprehension in the minds of farmers that you will reinstate the zamindari system by selling their land,” he added.

    He also raised questions over the intent of the Centre behind the new farm laws and decision to not give legal status to the Minimum Support Prices (MSPs) for all crops. He urged the Centre to shun its ego and repeal the farm laws.

    “We demand complete rollback of farm laws, the legal guarantee of MSPs for all crops, and the complete implementation of Swaminathan report,” he further remarked.

    Farmers have been protesting on the different borders of the national capital since November 26 last year against the three newly enacted farm laws: Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020; the Farmers Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and farm Services Act 2020 and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.