New Delhi: The BJP held a hurried press conference on Wednesday afternoon addressed by its National President J.P. Nadda to allay farmers’ fears and the perception about the three farm Bills.
While saying the bills are intended to give flexibility to farmers, he clarified, “MSP tha, hai our rahega (MSP was, is and will remain)”.
“Look MSP was, is and will stay. But if you get Rs 10 under MSP and can sell it at Rs 12 outside, what will you prefer,” said Nadda.
He added that Agricultural Produce Market Committees (APMC) will continue. The APMC is the marketing boards established by the state governments in order to eliminate the exploitation of farmers by the intermediaries.
“The APMC will continue, so will MSP but the farmers will be free to choose the most profitable market of their choice. The farm contract will be on the produce and not the land. The land will always belong to the owner. These are enabling legislations,” Nadda claimed.
Recently three farm Bills which were earlier brought in as Ordinances were opposed by sections of farmers in Haryana, threatening to block traffic. One of the Bills, the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, 2020, was cleared by the Lok Sabha amid the opposition’s objections.
The other two bills have been introduced as well. They are The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020 and Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020.
Facing criticism, the BJP’s ally the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) has distanced itself claiming they were not consulted. It also tried to reach out to another BJP ally and ruling coalition partner in Haryana, the Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) to impress upon the BJP to reconsider its decision.
Nadda said the BJP is in “constant touch” with its allies. Hitting out at the Congress, whose Chief Minister in Punjab has been targeting the SAD and the BJP over the Bills, Nadda said that by opposing these Bills, the Congress is only hampering the farmers’ all round development.
He called the Bills “reformist” and “Revolutionary”. “These will bring about a paradigm change in the lives of the farmers who will be free to sell their produce in a competitive market of their choice,” he remarked.
–IANS
