Farmers Movement Archive

Hooda, BJP-JJP leaders lock horns over farm laws

The Bharatiya Janata Party-Jannayak Janta Party leaders on Saturday trained guns at former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, accusing him of misleading the farmers even as “his own government had launched the contract farming laws in 2007”. Sirsa MP Sunita Duggal said, “In 2007, the Congress government had introduced contract farming in Haryana, which did not mention the MSP. Even in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the Congress manifesto had promised to repeal the Agriculture Produce Market Committee (APMC) Act. But now, Congress workers are provoking the farmers to hold protests in the state as they have themselves been wiped out of power by the public.”She further said, “Prime Minister Narendra Modi has clarified that the minimum support price (MSP) is not going to end and the union government has announced the MSP for the next Rabi season crops.”Meanwhile, Jannayak Janata party (JJP) president Nishan Singh said, “The Congress is alleging that the MSP system is going end but our government is purchasing Kharif crops at MSP. Once the procurement process ends, the farmers’ will know the real truth behind these laws.”The JJP leader further said, “The union government brought the same contract farming law along with two others, which was implemented in the state during Hooda’s regime and Hooda had advocated for the same before the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to implement across the country.”Reacting to BJP-JJP leaders’ allegations, leader of opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda, said his party will not allow implementation of the new farm laws in the state.“The ruling party leaders are misleading people about our contract farming law, which was implemented during my tenure as a chief minister of Haryana in 2007. The contract farming rule framed by my government says the agreed rate or contract rate shall not be less than the MSP of the proceeding year. Where there is no MSP and no agreed rate, the amount of security shall be calculated at the rate of 15% of the prevailing market rate of agreement,” the former CM said while asking the ruling party leaders if the new laws have such provisions to protect farmers.Hooda further said that the government has one option now – it should promulgate a fourth ordinance which guarantees that the farmers’ produce will be procured at MSP and any person or firm found purchasing below this price would face a criminal case.

Hindustan Times

03-10-2020

City