Vibha sharma
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, September 15
The Lok Sabha approved the 2020 Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill today, amid strong objection from opposition MPs, who called the measure “anti-farmer and pro-hoarder and pro-corporation.” .
In a surprise move, Shiromani Akali Dal, a BJP ally, said he was “not consulted” before introducing the three contentious agricultural ordinances. Party chairman Sukhbir Badal said that when the Center introduced the ordinances in June, his party’s representative in the Union Cabinet had “expressed reservations.”
Will move the court: Capt
State Congress will challenge the Essential Products (Amendment) Act of 2020. Overlooking the concerns of farmers, the government has imposed a core law on a state issue, thereby eroding the federal fabric of the country.— Captain Amarinder Singh, CM from Punjab
“These ordinances should not have been presented without discussion and dispelling the fears of the agricultural community,” he said, invoking the contribution of his father Parkash Singh Badal as agricultural leader to press his claim.
Sukhbir said: “Before introducing the ordinances, parties and groups representing farmers should have been consulted. In the past two months, I have spoken with many farmers’ organizations and listened to their concerns on the matter.”
He said the ordinances would affect farmers in Punjab and Haryana, where the mandi system existed. “I don’t know of others, but our concerns have not been addressed,” he said, urging the Union Government to reconsider the matter.
Sukhbir’s claim was ridiculed by AAP’s Sangrur MP Bhagwant Mann, who said: “I am surprised that he (Sukhbir) opposes the bills, while his wife holds a ministerial position at the Center. They (Akalis) should have sacrificed the ministry if they were against the Bills. “
In his response, the Minister of State for Consumption, Food and Public Distribution, Raosaheb Patil Danve, stated that the legislation would help farmers to progress. He said the amendments to the Essential Commodities Law were made in accordance with the recommendations of the high-level committee, which included states such as Punjab and Haryana. “Before introducing the ordinances, a high-powered committee of chief ministers from states such as Punjab, Odisha, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Arunachal Pradesh was formed,” he said, adding that Punjab was represented by its agriculture minister.
