Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Dec 11: As the centre kept waiting for the agitating farmers respond to its offer for resuming talks to break the deadlock, the Bharatiya Kisan Union, one of the farmers’ unions having organized the protest rallies, on Friday approached the Supreme Court against the three contentious agriculture laws which the agitators are demanding be totally rolled back.
The union in its petition in the apex court requesting it to strike down the three acts said the farmers were apprehensive that the new laws would make them vulnerable to corporate greed.
The move to approach the Supreme Court came two days after the protesting farmers rejected the centre’s 20-page proposal offering to amend the disputed provisions in the acts, but showed no inclination to repeal the acts as demanded by the farmers. The union agriculture minister Narendra Singh Tomar on Friday again repeated his offer for talks reiterating that the government had “no ego” and was ready to discuss all the issues “with an open mind.”
Tomar said the farmers’ unions had not communicated with the government since receiving the proposal on Wednesday and it was only through the media he had come to know that the agitating farmers had “rejected” the government’s offer. He, however, was confident that the farmers would return to the negotiation table “at least for the sake of the commoners in Delhi” who were facing a lot of hardships because of their holding seize of the borders of the national capital.
But the situation at the Delhi borders give no indication of the farmers ending the seize sooner. Instead, they looked prepared to stay put for many more days to maintain pressure on the centre to concede their demand. Some of the farmers camping on the Delhi borders said they were prepared to hang on at least for the next six months.
Arrangements were being made by the friends and the families of the protesters at the Delhi borders to ensure that they faced little problems to live under the open sky as long as necessary. A dental camp, medicine stalls, libraries, laundry services and a small temple — farmers have made several arrangements at the borders to continue their protest amid the harsh weather conditions.
At the Singhu border, some young farm leaders even brought some washing machines to help the protesters clean their clothes on the road. “We have been here for more than a week now. It’s cold and we don’t have a lot of clothes. I saw many old men washing clothes on the footpath, so I went back home and bought two machines. We have placed them on the footpath so everyone can use it. A lot of people come here and give their clothes. The machines also have good dryer so the farmers don’t have to wait for long for their clothes to dry,” said a farm leader. Several others have also brought washing machines operated with batteries and generators from trolleys and trucks and together these clean about 500 clothes a day.
The farmers agitating near the national capital have called for a nationwide protest on December 14 and said that they will block the Delhi-Jaipur national highway by December 12.
The union agriculture minister again assured the farmers that the new farm laws would prove to be beneficial for them and help them live a better life. “Laws made by the government have been formed after a lot of deliberation – to bring a change in the lives of farmers, to remove the injustice that was being done to them for years. It was done to ensure that farmers could live better lives and indulge in beneficial agriculture,” Tomar said.
The minister expressed hope of finding a mutual ground, saying that the Centre was ready to make changes in the farm laws after discussion. “We agree that we are not the over-ruling power and Unions might also have something in their mind. So, the government is ready to make reforms in the laws after talks,” Tomar said. “I think we will find a solution. I am hopeful. I would like to urge the farmers’ unions that they should break the deadlock. The government has sent them a proposal. If there is an objection over the provisions of an act, the discussion will be held over it,” he added.
Since November 26, thousands of farmers have been protesting the three farm laws – the Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.
Two senior Delhi Police officers heading security arrangements at Singhu border have tested Corona positive, a senior police officer said. Both the DCP-rank officers are in isolation, he said. Hundreds of police personnel have been deployed at the Singhu border point to prevent the protesters from entering the national capital.
The former Congress president Rahul Gandhi, meanwhile, quoting a report of the national sample survey hit out at the Narendra Modi government on the farmers’ issue and said the centre wanted to ensure that the income of all the farmers in the country “reduced” to the level of the earnings by the farmers in Bihar. The survey cited by Gandhi showed that an average Indian agricultural household earns Rs 77,124 in a year, with Punjab farmers earning Rs 2,16,708 annually and that of Bihar only Rs 42,684.
Meanwhile, the JJP in Haryana, a partner in the M L Khattar-led BJP government in the state, is facing a split on the farmers’ agitation. While its leader Dushyant Chautala, the deputy chief minister, was keen to continue to stay in the government stating that the farmers’ should call off the agitation after the Centre gave them assurances in writing that the Minimum Support Price (MSP) scheme would not be affected, at least seven of the party’s 10 MLAs are reported to be in favour of withdrawing support to the BJP government.
The BJP is six-member short of the majority in Haryana and will fall if the JJP withdraw support.