CM Channi Pulls Up Centre For Ignoring Farmers Demands, Says ‘Punjab Shouldn’t Be Made Another J&K’
Channi said the “condition of the farmers is getting worse day by day but the Centre is unaffected”.
Chandigarh: Taking on Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government for ignoring the concerns of the farmers, Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi on Tuesday appealed to the ruling dispensation at the Centre to repeal the three farm laws.
Channi said the “condition of the farmers is getting worse day by day but the Centre is unaffected”.
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“I, as the Punjab CM, want to appeal to the Centre to repeal the three farm laws,” he added, ANI reported.
Calling the protests against the three farm laws to be a serious issue, Channi said the Central government should take it seriously.
“Punjab is a border state and should not be made another Jammu and Kashmir,” he added.
The Chief Minister’s remarks came a day after the Punjab cabinet passed a resolution seeking repeal of the Central government’s three contentious farm laws.
The move coincided with the ‘Bharat Bandh’ called by the Samyukta Kisan Morcha, the umbrella body of over 40 farm unions spearheading the farmers’ agitation.
Earlier on Monday, Punjab witnessed complete shutdown in view of the bandh. The protestors blocked national and state highways in several districts, including Amritsar, Ludhiana, Jalandhar and Mohali.
The transport services also remained suspended due to the bandh. Besides, the shops and other commercial establishments remained closed at several places in Punjab.
The farmers mostly from Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh have been since November last year demanding that the Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, Farmers' (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020, be rolled back and a new law made to guarantee minimum support price for crops.
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The farmers fear the three contentious farm laws would do away with the minimum support price system, leaving them at the mercy of big corporations.
Several rounds of talks between the farmers and the government have failed to break the deadlock.
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