The Congress leader alleged that the new farm laws will allow big businesses to approach farmers directly and the mandis will, therefore, be destroyed.
Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi, who is on a two-day visit to his constituency in poll-bound Kerala, said the entire world can see the difficulties being faced by Indian farmers but the Centre is unable to understand their pain.
“We have pop stars who are commenting on the situation of the farmers but the Indian government is not interested. They [the government] are not going to take back these laws unless they are forced to. The reason is these three laws are designed to destroy the agricultural system in India and give the entire business to two or three friends of Narendra Modi,” said Rahul who led a tractor rally in Wayanad on Monday as a mark of solidarity to the protesting farmers.
Continuing with his attack on the Centre, the Wayanad MP added, “Agriculture is the only business that belongs to Bharat Mata. These three laws have been designed for two or three people to own and control Indian agriculture.”
Referring to his ‘Hum Do, Hamare Do’ jibe in the Parliament, Rahul added, “Two people in the government are partnering with two people outside the government. So, the idea [behind these laws] is very simple — it is a ploy for these four people to control agriculture in the country. The idea is that farmers should now sell their products directly to these big businesses. They want to destroy the entire agricultural chain which protects 40% of our country and gives food to all the people.”
The Congress leader alleged that the new farm laws will allow big businesses to approach farmers directly and the mandis will, therefore, be destroyed. Calling the laws a “direct attack on the Essential Commodities Act”, he claimed farmers will now no longer be in a position to negotiate the price of their produce.
“We will oppose these laws and make sure that the government is forced to take them back. We will not allow Bharat Mata’s business to be taken over by two or three of Narendra Modi’s friends,” said Rahul.
On Sunday, farmer protesting at Delhi borders announced a series of events from February 23 to 27 to intensify their agitation against the three new agricultural laws. The Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), which is spearheading the protests, has said February 26 will be observed as ‘Yuva Kisan Diwas’ (youth farmers day) and February 27 as ‘Mazdoor Kisan Ekta Divws’ (farmer-labourer unity day).
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