Farmers' agitation: Govt unwilling to repeal laws as they benefit corporates, say protest leaders

NEW DELHI: Farmers rejected reassurances of the government and alleged that it was unwilling to repeal the three laws as they benefit corporates. They threatened to reoccupy railway tracks in the coming days as part of intensifying the stir. They also announced making all tolls free on Saturday.

“Our simple question to the government is, what does it stand to lose if the laws are repealed? We asked home minister Amit Shah and he was silent. Is it not a fact that these laws are meant to benefit corporates? Laws like Pota, Tada and Misa have been scrapped. Then why can’t the farm laws be scrapped,” farmer leader Balbir Singh Rajewal said in response to agriculture minister Tomar’s remark that amendments can be made instead of repealing the law.

Rajewal said the minister had himself admitted that the Centre had exercised its power under the concurrent list covering trade and commerce to bring the laws. “This means the law has been made for the benefit of traders and not farmers, who only do agriculture and marketing which are state subjects,” he argued.

Farmer leaders took exception to Tomar saying MSP “was never an issue at all”. Tomar only promised a “written assurance on MSP”. Farmers’ representatives provided ET a two-page letter Tomar had written on August 27 to SAD chief Sukhbir Badal, where he made a four-point assurance on MSP’s continuance, which farmers rejected as not good as making MSP a legal right of farmers.

“MSP will not be affected by the farm ordinances, procurement on MSP by state agencies like Markfed and Punsup would continue as before, the mandis under the APMC Act would continue and new ones can also be opened and the state can impose any tax/fee on mandis”.

Farmers’ representative Darshan Pal said the government was ready to only provide a similar letter to the farmer unions.