Farmers Movement Archive

Centre feared farm law backlash in UP, Punjab elections, says NCP chief

PUNE: Former Union agriculture minister and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar said on Friday that the central government’s announcement repealing the three farm laws was spurred by the need to prevent a backlash in the upcoming assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh and Punjab. Pawar, in a series of posts on a microblogging and social networking site, said, “It was good that farmers from Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Harayana participated in the protest. The farmers and the people in Uttar Pradesh and Punjab would have posed questions to the BJP’s candidates on farm laws during the elections. Fearing a backlash, the government decided to repeal the laws.” The NCP chief said that though the government’s decision came late, it was a wise decision. “I salute the farmers for their peaceful protest for one year. For the first time in the history of the country, the farmers had to protest for more than a year. The government should have listened to their demands and opted for a middle path to address their concerns through dialogue, but it took the extreme step of going ahead with the laws,” he added. “The government ignored the views of the opposition parties on the three farm bills. We told the parliament that the agriculture sector is the soul of the country. Thus, a discussion on the subject should have been taken, irrespective of political differences. However, the government did not pay heed to opposition views and passed the bills in haste,” Pawar added. Pawar reiterated that there was a discussion on reforms in farm laws when he was the agriculture minister. “But I am of the view that this kind of decision should not be taken at ministers’ meetings or in New Delhi. As per the Constitution, agriculture is a state subject. The Centre need to take the states into confidence along with farmers’ organisations and agriculture experts before going for any reforms in farm laws.” Senior state NCP leader and home minister Dilip Walse Pati said in a social media post, “Had the Prime Minister’s announcement come earlier, many lives of innocent farmers could have been saved. I pay tributes to the farmers who lost their lives in the struggle.” Another NCP leader and Shirur Member of Parliament Amol Kolhe said, “The announcement is a victory for farmers’ unity. The Union government might have taken the decision in view of the upcoming Uttar Pradesh assembly elections. However, it is a big thing for the affected farmers.” Prakash Ambedkar, president, Vanchit Bahujan Aaghadi, said, in video and social media message, “Even though Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) has said that the three agricultural laws have been repealed, the Supreme Court of India should still give its judgment on whether agriculture is a state subject or not.”

The Times of India

2021-11-20

Pune