Farmers Movement Archive

PM Modi's speech offered no solution: Opposition

Minutes after Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke about the farm issue in his reply on the President’s speech in the Rajya Sabha, the Congress criticised his speech on Monday and said that the address did not offer any solution to farmers protesting against three contentious agri laws.Senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge said: “We expected that the PM, looking at the ongoing agitations across the country, will withdraw the three black laws and take all stakeholders into confidence to review the laws. He spoke in his own style but didn’t say a word about relief to farmers.”Congress leaders also said that the PM tried to suggest that no one knows the contents of the three laws. “Is it possible? There are experts among the farmers and entire opposition leaders know about the laws. The first law promoted black market, the second one helps the rich people and the third one helps hoarding,” Kharge said.Another Congress MP, Deepender Hooda, alleged that “the PM disappointed the farmers. The government is unable to understand the seriousness of the situation.” Congress chief whip Jairam Ramesh said: “PM Modi said that FDI is also ‘Foreign Destructive Ideology’. This from someone whose governance has been based solely on FDI — Fear, Deception, Intimidation.” Reacting to PM’s speech in the Rajya Sabha, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) senior vice president Prem Singh Chandumajra said that it appeared that the country’s backbone peasantry has a bigger test to prove the genuineness of their cause. He added that it was expected from the PM to make a big announcement but by criticising the farmers who are protesting on the borders of Delhi, he denied them the legitimate right.According to Chandumajra, the PM did not give clarity on MSP, despite his party leaders making announcements on the public forum that the new farm laws will not impact the MSP. “He (PM) has made no commitment to make MSP a legal right,” added the former MPBJP president J P Nadda asserted on Monday that PM Narendra Modi’s address in Rajya Sabha has dispelled the web of confusion being created over a host of issues and laid out a clear direction for the country.Modi has made it clear that the government is taking all necessary steps for farmers’ welfare, which is its priority, Nadda said.

Hindustan Times

09-02-2021

India