Congress leaders of Haryana and Punjab on Saturday hit out at Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal, accusing the State government of adopting an oppressive stance against farmers during the ongoing agitation against the Centre’s farm laws .
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Haryana Congress president and former Rajya Sabha MP Kumari Selja said that the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government in Haryana did not have the courage to support the suffering of farmers in front of the Central government as the BJP’s State leadership was afraid of its high command.
Ms. Selja questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s silence on the farmers’ protest: “Prime Minister, who used to speak on every issue through ‘Mann Ki Baat’ and tweets, is now sitting silent on the farmers’ movement. Prime Minister does not have enough time to listen to the farmers and say anything about their suffering, why?”
She alleged that the Centre was only concerned with capitalists, which is why it was bent on suppressing the movement with oppressive policies, crushing the voices of farmers. “When the Prime Minister addressed scores of people in rallies during Bihar elections, was it not a step to spread corona? Today, when farmers want to agitate for their rights, they are being suppressed by using the excuse of corona. This highlights the double character of the BJP government,” she said.
Punjab Congress president Sunil Jakhar condemned the registration of FIRs against farmers by the Haryana government, and demanded immediate quashing of all such cases.
Mr. Jakhar said that the food growers of the country were on warpath for securing their rights, and the immense contribution of Punjabis for India’s peace and prosperity could not be ignored. Taking strong exception to a remark by Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal that “the protesting farmers were only from Punjab”, Mr. Jakhar said that farmers from across the country are protesting against the farm laws and the BJP was issuing baseless and divisive statements only to weaken the struggle.
“Haryana government should quash all the FIRs registered against farmers,” he said, adding, “Farmers from not only Punjab but also Haryana have moved to national capital,” he added.