Withdraw farm ordinances: Punjab parties

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, June 24

At a meeting convened by Punjab CM Capt Amarinder Singh over the Centre’s ordinances on agriculture, all political parties, barring the SAD and BJP, unanimously decided to ask the government to withdraw the same, terming it as an “infringement on the rights of the states”. A resolution in this regard was passed after a five-hour video-conference.

However, the SAD favoured legal opinion before contesting the issue. Party president Sukhbir Badal said they would be part of an all-party delegation that was to meet the PM on the issue, but only to “clear doubts” and for assurance that the MSP regime would stay. He accused the Congress of trying to politicise the issue.

The CM said the Centre had issued the ordinances without waiting for the report of a committee formed under the Maharashtra CM. Dubbing the ordinances as “dangerous”, he warned that these would create an unprecedented crisis in Punjab. AAP Punjab unit chief and MP Bhagwant Mann said not only the farmers, but arhtiyas and small traders too would be impacted.

Charging the Centre with benefiting private players under the Covid pretext, he said the move would ruin Punjab.

“A delegation of representatives of all political parties led by the state CM will meet the Prime Minister and Union Agriculture Minister to convey their reservations on the anti-farmer legislations and urge them to immediately withdraw these in public interest”, the resolution passed at the meeting read.

It said that agriculture and markets being state subjects under the Seventh Schedule, the ordinances were against the spirit of cooperative federalism. PPCC president Sunil Jakhar questioned the timing of the ordinances when the country was in the midst of the Covid crisis and a crumbling economy.

BJP state president Ashwani Sharma denied any move to end the MSP regime. CPI state secretary Bant Singh Brar questioned the need of the ordinances when the time-tested marketing systems were working well. Citing the Anandpur Sahib resolution, SAD (Taksali) leader and MP Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa said the ordinances were meant to weaken the federal structure. “The concerns regarding the MSP are valid and the BJP needs to address these,” he said. CPI (M) state secretary Sukhwinder Singh Sekhon said the MSP regime, without mandis and the FCI, would be of no use to the farmers.

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