Stating that the new farm laws were passed after extensive deliberations in Parliament, the BJP said in Rajya Sabha on Wednesday that the doors of government were always open for farmers to resolve the issue amicably, and urged the parties of the opposition not to turn the agitation into another Shaheen. Bagh.
Opening the debate on the Motion of Appreciation to the President’s Speech, BJP member Bhubaneswar Kalita said: “The benefits of these three important agricultural laws have started to reach more than 10 crore people and small farmers. There has been no reduction in farmers’ rights and facilities. Through these agricultural reforms, the government has granted new rights to farmers ”.
Saying that the government has “the utmost respect for farmers” and that Agriculture Minister Narendra Tomar and Railway Minister Piyush Goyal have held multiple rounds of discussions to resolve the problem, Kalita said, addressing the Opposition: “The government is ready to discuss all issues … but my appeal to our friends, please don’t turn it into another Shaheen Bagh, “he said.
Rajya Sabha President Naidu had said on Tuesday that members can raise the farmers issue during debate on the motion, as the president had mentioned the unrest in his speech.
In his speech, the leader of the opposition and leader of Congress, Ghulam Nabi Azad, while condemning the violence in the Red Fort during the rally of peasant tractors on Republic Day, called on the government to repeal the three laws without making it a a matter of prestige.
With Narendra Modi watching, Azad said that the prime minister himself should make an announcement about repealing the laws. “I urge the government to withdraw these three bills,” he said, adding that the government should create a committee to find out the whereabouts of people “who have disappeared” during the farmers’ protest.
Referring to the violence that erupted in Delhi during the farmers’ tractor rally on January 26, the congressional leader said that the entire opposition condemned the incident. “Disrespect for the national flag cannot be tolerated,” he said, demanding strict action against the culprits.
Describing the farmers as “annadata,” the congressional leader said there was no point in confronting them. Instead, he said, the government should focus on other important issues, including reviving the economy.
Azad also demanded the withdrawal of the sedition cases against his party colleague Shashi Tharoor and the journalists, saying: “Shashi Tharoor was Minister of State for Foreign Affairs. He has represented the foreign country. How can it be anti-national? So we are all anti-national. “
Members of the opposition presented 118 amendments to the motion of thanks to the president’s speech.
However, by calling the January 26 violence condemnable and requesting an investigation by an acting Supreme Court judge, Prasanna Acharya of the BJD, a party that has in the past joined the government on crucial issues such as the elimination of Article 370, he said. He does not see any reason why the government could not include “two lines” that guarantee MSP in agricultural laws.
Tiruchi Siva of the DMK and K Keshava Rao of the TRS raised how they allegedly rushed to pass the agricultural laws in Rajya Sabha during the last session. “If only we were a little more democratic, a little more liberal, things would not have reached this point,” Siva said, calling for the laws to be repealed.
Ram Gopal Yadav of the SP called the government “ruthless” even when “farmers are losing their lives in the cold.” Saying that Parliament or even the country’s borders do not have the kind of security seen at Delhi’s borders, Yadav asked the government to repeal the laws, introduce new bills, and send them to a Standing Committee for their approval. scrutiny. “If you had done this before, none of this would have happened,” Yadav said.
However, the laws got strong backing from RCP Singh of JD (U), who said that after the APMC were phased out in Bihar in 2006, crop production and procurement have increased.
The debate on the motion of thanks will continue in Rajya Sabha on Thursday.
Earlier, three Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MPs, including Sanjay Singh, were removed from Rajya Sabha on Wednesday after proceedings on agricultural laws were disrupted.
While the Upper House was suspended only once, briefly, Lok Sabha witnessed repeated postponements with the opposition insisting on a separate discussion on the farmers’ protests.
President Om Birla’s attempt to resolve the matter through discussion with floor leaders was unsuccessful as he refused to allocate five hours to discuss the farmers issue.
When the house convened at 4 pm, congressional MPs headed for the house well shouting slogans and were soon joined by members of the DMK, TMC, Izquierda, AAP and Harsimrat Kaur of SAD.
Despite the president asking the opposition to stop question hour, the members intensified their protests, forcing Birla to suspend the procedure for 30 minutes.
The Chamber met at 4.30, but had to get up again. As the protests continued after the House reconvened at 5 pm, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi criticized the Opposition for its “U-turn in its promise to hold a debate on the Motion of Appreciation for the Presidential Speech without interruptions … It is an insult to the president ”.
(With input from Liz Mathew)
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