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Delhi HC refuses to ban CJP's Tiranga rally at Central Park in Connaught Place today /////// Police says will control and regulate it /////// NDMC closes the park for the public on Friday and Saturday
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Why Amarinder Singh Wants Protesting Farmers To Go To Delhi

By Linus Garg
First publised on 2021-09-13 14:36:34

About the Author

Sunil Garodia Linus tackles things head-on. He takes sides in his analysis and it fits excellently with our editorial policy. No 'maybe's' and 'allegedly' for him, only things in black and white.

The Punjab chief minister, Capt. Amarinder Singh, today asked protesting farmers not to disturb Punjab and take their protest to Delhi as it was having an adverse effect on the development of the state. He said that farmers were protesting at 113 locations in the state and it was becoming very difficult for the administration.

What kind of logic is that? Granted that the protest is against the new farm laws introduced by the Centre, but farmers are likely to protest where they are located as that gives them comfort in arranging things. If all protests of all kinds were to shift to Delhi, wouldn’t it affect the development the NCR region and even of the entire nation? Protesting in Delhi is important, but that should be a strong protest by farm leaders, not by thousands laying seize to the capital.

It is nobody's case to keep a protest involving thousands of farmers running indefinitely. Instead of advising, even helping, farmers to come up with a considered response to the new farm laws, the opposition, especially the Congress, is more interested in putting pressure on the Centre to withdraw the said laws and that is why Amarinder Singh wants farmers to go to Delhi.

The worst thing is that none of the opponents of the new laws have come up with an alternative set of laws to reform the agricultural sector. This effectively means that they feel that the sector does not need reforms and the status quo must be maintained. This is regressive thinking.

If agriculture needs reforms, and most experts and even opposition politicians will agree that it does, then new laws have to be drafted. The Centre has come up with three such laws. The farmers have said they differ and want a repeal of these laws. The Centre has offered to discuss each law clause-by-clause and delete or suitably amend contentious clauses. But the farmers are not agreeable to any discussion.

The intervention by the Supreme Court has also not much headway. There is no news of any work done by the committee appointed by the apex court. Things have come to a standstill even as farmers keep protesting and taking their fight to the BJP. The government must rectify its initial mistake of not having wider consultations with the farm lobby before rushing through the laws. Let the laws remain non-functional. Let the government publish a specific questionnaire asking all farm groups, political parties and agriculture experts on how the sector should be reformed. Let them answer. Then let an expert committee draft new laws based on consensus. Reforms are necessary but so is consensus of the stakeholders. That seems to be the only plausible way out of the current impasse. 

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