Bar Council of India slams politicisation of SC's order, urges farmers to suspend stir

Bar Council of India on Wednesday slammed politicisation of Supreme Court's order staying implementation of three farm laws passed by Parliament. Dubbing order as a "historic step", it opined that apex court's aim was to save lives of protesting farmers from cold wear and COVID-19. In a statement, BCI chairman Manan Kumar Mishra recalled that whole legal fraternity h opposed clause in agrarian legislation which me Sub-Divisional Magistrate sole judicatory authority. 

Calling upon farmers to suspend ir agitation in wake of SC's intervention, he accused some politicians of weakening institutions for ir own "vested interests". Multiple parties including Congress and TMC have questioned impartiality of 4-member committee formed by SC to resolve standoff between farmers and Centre. Maintaining that interested parties h right to move top court to seek a modification of order, Mishra argued that some elements only wanted to misle farmers. Claiming that 90% of peace-loving farmers are t in favour of continuation of stir, BCI lauded SC for its intention to save country from lawlessness.

Here is BCI's statement: 

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SC's verdict

On Tuesday, a three-judge SC bench comprising Chief Justice SA Bobde, Justice AS Bopanna and Justice V Ramasubramanian laid down  romap for resolution of standoff by staying implementation of Farmers' Produce Tre and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020,  Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020 and  Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020. Moreover, it has t only ordered that  MSP system in place before enactment of agrarian legislation shall continue but also me it clear that landholdings of farmers shall be protected. SC-constituted committee comprising agricultural ecomist Ashok Gulati, BKU national president Bhupinder Singh Mann, Pramod Kumar Joshi- Director, South Asia, International Food Policy Research Institute and Shetkari Sanghatana president Anil Ghanwat will solicit views of farm unions and Centre.

This panel has been directed to submit its recommendations pertaining to farm laws to SC within two months from date of its first sitting. ditionally, representatives of all farmer unions, irrespective of wher y are holding a protest or t, have been asked to participate in deliberations of 4-member committee and put forth ir viewpoints. Though court said that it did t intend to stifle a "peaceful protest", it appealed to farmers' unions to convince ir members to get back to ir livelihood as a result of this "extraordinary order". 

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