Agitating farmers have intensified their protests on the day of Lohri festival by burning copies of the three farm laws. They criticised the attitude of the Centre and said the laws must be withdrawn immediately.

The All India Kisan Sangharsh Coordination Committee (AIKSCC) claimed in a statement that farmers burnt copies of the Acts at more than 20,000 spots all over the country. “At all places hundreds of farmers and supporters assembled with copies of the Acts, raised slogans demanding their repeal and set them on fire,” a statement from AIKSCC said.

It also appealed to farmers in districts within 300 km of Delhi to mobilise thousands of tractors for the Republic Day Tractor Parade.

AIKSCC’s statement said the Centre failed to justify to the people of the country and to the farmer leaders, over the last 50 days of intense struggle, how the Acts will benefit the farmers. “Its logic of technology upgradation, capital investments, value addition, growth, come to naught with the enactment of these Acts which give legal rights to the big corporate for this with the added assertion that the government will promote these corporate houses,’ it added.

It said the Centre has falsely accused farmer leaders of not pointing out “even one clause” which is “detrimental to their interests”. “Farmer Unions have in writing and during discussions given full details of the detrimental effects of each and every clause and the collective undermining of the farmers’ Rights over markets, their security of land, the expected rise in prices of inputs and services, the expected fall in price of produce, the increase in farmer debts, farmer suicides, the winding up of PDS, the rise in food prices and the rise in starvation deaths, etc. The government has not only failed the farmers, it has also failed in its duty to put correct facts before the highest court of the country,” the statement said.

Charge against Centre

The Opposition parties too criticised the Centre. Congress leader and MP Abhishek Singhvi told reporters that it is clear that the Centre has attempted to fool all the people of India all the time by practising falsehood on stilts. “Unfortunately, they have not even spared the Supreme Court,” he said.

Commenting on the Supreme Court’s decision to form a panel, he said if the individuals in the panel have pre-stated, pre-existing views on the farm laws, then the efficacy of the strength of those individual views, or the stature of those individuals would be diminished. “The Congress only wants to say that it is entirely open to those, who find lack of faith in the committee, or lack of interest in their pre-existing stands to join or not to join,” he said.

Published on January 13, 2021