Punjabi poet Surjit Patar to return Padma Shri in solidarity with farmers
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Title
Punjabi poet Surjit Patar to return Padma Shri in solidarity with farmers
Description
Chandigarh, December 7Showing solidarity with ongoing farmers' protest, eminent Punjabi poet Surjit Patar has decided to return his Padma Shri to the Union Government in protest over farm Bills.In a statement, Patar said he was pained at the “insensitive” attitude of the central government towards the demands of farmers who have been protesting peacefully.The 75-year-old said he has decided to return his Padma Shri award with a heavy heart. Patar had received the Padma Shri in 2012.Earlier, Akali Dal stalwart and former Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal had announced he would return his Padma Vibhushan award in protest against "the betrayal of the farmers by the Government of India."In a letter to President Ram Nath Kovind, Badal said he was returning the award due to "the shocking indifference and contempt with which the government was treating the ongoing peaceful and democratic agitation of the farmers against the three farm Acts".Incidentally, SAD (Democratic) chief and rebel Rajya Sabha member Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa has also announced that he would be returning his Padma Bhushan award.Thousands of farmers from Punjab, Haryana and other areas have stayed put at various Delhi border points, protesting against the new farm laws, which they fear will dismantle the minimum support price (MSP) system, leaving them at the “mercy” of big corporate firms.Several international sports persons from Punjab had also announced to return their sports awards and extended support to the farmers’ agitation. — with PTI
Publisher
The Tribune
Date
2020-12-07