Haryana: 2 more JJP MLAs come out in support of farmers

Two more MLAs from the JJP, an alliance partner of the ruling BJP in Haryana, on Sunday came out in support of the farmers seeking the repeal of the Centre’s new agriculture laws.

Jannayak Janta Party MLA Ram Kumar Gautam also demanded that a special assembly session be convened to bring a resolution urging the Centre to scrap the three laws.

Separately, JJP legislator Amarjeet Dhanda too came out in support of the farmers, saying he backs their agitation.

“We hope the government will agree to their demands. I appeal to the Centre that they should listen to what the farmers are demanding and resolve the issue,” Dhanda, an MLA from Julana constituency, said.

Earlier, two other JJP MLAs -- Jogi Ram Sihag and Ram Karan Kala -- had announced their support to the farmers and participated in agitation in Haryana, going against their party's stand on the issue.

Sihag had also refused to accept his appointment by the state government as chief of the Haryana Housing Board.

In the 90-member Haryana Assembly, the BJP has 40 MLAs, JJP has 10 and the Congress has 31.

Seventy-four-year-old Gautam said the Centre and the ML Khattar government in Haryana have said that the laws will benefit the farmers but asked why they were being forced upon them.

Hitting out at the Narendra Modi government, Gautam asked that if the farmers don’t want these laws, why are they being thrust upon them? What is their (Centre) compulsion?.

 He demanded that the state government convene a special session of the state assembly and urged all the political parties of Haryana to join hands and bring a resolution urging the Centre to repeal the laws.

“I want to tell the Khattar government that a special session should be summoned immediately and all parties should join hands to bring a resolution urging Modi Ji (Centre) to repeal these three laws before it is too late,” the legislator from Narnaund constituency in Hisar district, told reporters.

Meanwhile, another JJP MLA and senior leader Ishwar Singh said the Centre is engaged in talks with the farmers and everyone is hopeful that a solution will be found at the earliest.

Singh said that he stood with the farmers and nobody was against them.

Congress legislature party leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda had on Friday said that the party will seek the convening of a special session of the assembly to bring a no-confidence motion against the BJP-led state government.

Hooda had claimed that the Khattar government had lost the confidence of both the people and the House, and said a Congress delegation will meet Governor Satyadeo Narain Arya soon to demand summoning of the House.

On Tuesday, Independent MLA from Dadri, Sombir Sangwan, had withdrawn support to the BJP-JJP government on the farmers' issue.

A day earlier, he had resigned as chairman of the state's livestock development board.

JJP national president Ajay Singh Chautala had suggested on Tuesday that the Centre should give a written assurance to farmers that the minimum support price system would continue.

However, Congress had accused the two-year-old party of continuing to cling to power and support the anti-agriculturist, anti-labor, and anti-poor three black laws, and be part of the government. 

(IMAGE CREDITS: PTI)