Supreme Court Intervenes In Farm Dispute
Editor-in-Chief of indiacommentary.com. Current Affairs analyst and political commentator.
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By Sunil Garodia
First publised on 2020-12-16 11:04:59
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Editor-in-Chief of indiacommentary.com. Current Affairs analyst and political commentator.
View all posts by this Author
The Supreme Court has decided to form a committee to resolve the farm dispute. The said committee is to comprise of representatives from farm unions from all over India, representatives of the government and other stakeholders. It has issued notices to the Centre and the states in this regard. The apex court was hearing a bunch of petitions that sought a direction to the authorities to remove the agitating farmers from Delhi's borders as it violated the apex court's ruling in the Shaheen Bagh case.
The court was of the opinion that the farm issue would soon become a national issue and it seemed that the government's effort to convince the farmers about the efficacy of the new farm bills were not paying off and a resolution was not in sight. The court said that it would be better for a committee to discuss the matter and find a resolution.
This is what is required. This correspondent had suggested forming a committee in earlier articles on the subject because direct negotiation between warring parties often does not yield results. But since the farmers do not trust the government and independent experts were not coming forward to act as mediators, forming such a committee would have been difficult.
Hence, it is good that the apex court has started the process. The farm unions will perhaps agree to be a part of such a committee if it is set up by the court. They have already started deliberating on what the court has said.
The court must ensure that apart from the farm unions, government representatives and other stakeholders, outside experts in agriculture, public policy and legal matters also get a place in the committee. It must also lay down the process of discussion and maybe mandate that the bills be discussed clause by clause to better understand the objections of the farmers.
A negotiated settlement, overseen by the Supreme Court, would ensure that no one plays spoilsport and reforms are initiated in the agriculture sector without compromising the interests of the farmers.
