MUMBAI: Under fire from all quarters, the Maharashtra government suspended its own controversial Aug. 10 order on Wednesday implementing the three agricultural ordinances, now laws, that made it the first state in the country to enforce them, officials here said. .
These were: Ordinance 2020 on Trade in Agricultural Products and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation), Ordinance of Guarantee and Agricultural Services (Empowerment and Protection) of Farmers 2020 and Ordinance of Essential Products (Amendment) 2020, of June 5 2020 – all now laws.
According to the August 10 order issued by Marketing Director Satish Soni, these ordinances had to be “strictly enforced” even before the laws were passed by Parliament last week, sparking massive protests among peasants across India.
The development comes 48 hours after IANS first highlighted the contentious issue that sparked a furor in political circles around the world with the shocked ruler Maha Vikas Aghadi’s (MVA) allies left panting and fuming.
The accelerated political circumstances that led to the suspension order came after an MLC Shashikant J. Shinde from the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) defied Pune’s order from the Marketing Directorate.
Among other things, Shinde maintained that the August 10 order was issued without relying on any of the interested parties, including APMC, farmers’ bodies, workers, local officials and others.
The matter arose before the marketing minister. Balasaheb Shamrao Patil who at a hearing this morning, suspended the August 10 notice and posted the matter for an additional hearing on October 27.
Welcoming the order, Vasantrao Naik Sheti Swavlamban Mission (VNSSM) President Kishore Tiwari called it “a victory for poor farmers in Maharashtra” and MVA allies Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress, who strongly oppose the new farm laws.
“This was done surreptitiously by two bureaucrats Anoop Kumar and Satish Soni who deliberately misled the minister. I have demanded Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray fire them both for working against the policies of the state government,” Tiwari, who was awarded a post of Minister of State. status – told IANS.
Praising the state for the decision, All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) President Dr. Ashok Dhawale said that farm laws are detrimental to the interests of farmers across the country.
“The AIKS welcomes the move by the Maharashtra government as the new agricultural laws are ‘pro-business principles’, ‘anti-farmers’ and ‘anti-federal’ that trample on the rights of states as agriculture is a state issue, “Dhawale told IANS. .
After the matter was brought up on September 28, there was a stirring politics in the state among the three ruling allies, as all have publicly opposed the new farm laws.
Official sources said that things reached a stage where one of the allies threatened to boycott the CM cabinet meeting and the top leaders of another partner warned of resignations if a decision was not made tonight on the order of 10. of August.
Even some leaders of the opposition Bharatiya Janata party, coming from agricultural backgrounds, surprised the notification, especially since it had come even before the Center issued rules, guidelines or framework on these ordinances and six weeks before Parliament approved the draft laws. law in the middle of a great uproar.
There was further shame that the Seine Minister of Agriculture Dadaji D. Bhuse had taken a public stance against the agricultural bills, the PNC Senior Deputy Minister Ajit Pawar said that the new laws would not be implemented without the opinion of the farmers. Experts and the Acting Speaker of Congress, Sonia Gandhi, had asked all states governed by Congress to work out viable options regarding farm laws.
In fact, Congress has announced an all-India agitation against the new farm laws, and most opposition-run states are likely to follow suit.
.
