Farmers Movement Archive

AIADMK MP criticizes Centre over hurry, but votes to pass bills in RS

Chennai: The AIADMK’s senior Rajya Sabha member S R Balasubramaniam on Sunday criticized the Centre over its urgency in pushing through the agriculture bills and stressed the need to have MSP (minimum support price) for farm produce. But, in the end, he toed the party’s line and supported the bills when they were put for voice vote in the Upper house. “We were told to vote in favour of the bill and we did. That is true. Of course, prior to that, whatever I wanted to say, I said in the house,” Balasubramaniam told TOI. “I criticized the Centre on what is the urgency for pushing these bills. I emphasized the need to have MSP,” he said. “They (AIADMK leadership) didn’t like me questioning the urgency and speaking in support of MSP. What can I do? Without even mentioning about these, how can I speak on the subject. I don’t believe in speaking like that. Let us see what will happen,” Balasubramaniam said. “The deputy CM spoke to me yesterday and today after I came out of the house. He expressed satisfaction when I explained it to him,” he added. “Since (P) Raveendranath Kumar has already welcomed the bills, they asked me to leave it at that and not say anything. We need to vote in favour of the bill, they told me, and I said okay. Only the deputy CM spoke to me. The CM conveyed it through the party office – that we should support the bill,” Balasubramaniam said. According to him, the whole thing could have been handled better in the Rajya Sabha. “The house could have been adjourned and reconvened tomorrow morning and they could have still passed the bills in half an hour,” he said, while adding that fellow party MP in Rajya Sabha N Chandrasekaran was asked to return from the airport (Delhi) after he had taken his boarding pass.

The Times of India

2020-09-21

Chennai