Punjab CM welcomes move allowing farmers to protest in Delhi, urges Centre to hold talks

Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh has welcomed the decision of the Centre allowing the agitating farmers to enter Delhi on Friday to hold protest against the three farm reform laws passed by the Parliament. The Punjab CM took to Twitter advising the Centre to also initiate talks with the farmers in order to "resolve the simmering issue".

The Centre on Friday allowed the protestors to enter Delhi after restricting them for two days at the Delhi border, resulting in clashes between the Haryana Police and the protestors. Farmers refused to back off from their 'Delhi Chalo' march and were seen standing at various points of Punjab-Haryana with dramatic visuals seen at Shambhu, Tikri, Singhu checkpoints. The Police, while trying to control the mob, fired at least eight rounds of tear gas shells and used water cannons.

The Centre had stated earlier that it will hold talks with the farmers regarding the farm reforms laws on December 3. However,  earlier in the day, Amarinder Singh questioned the Centre as to why is it waiting till December 3 and urged them to initiate talks at the earliest.

"Why wait till December 3 when the situation is getting out of hand now? Central govt needs to show statesmanship and accept the farmers' demand for assured MSP, which is the basic right of every farmer. If they can give verbal assurance I fail to understand why they can't make it a legal obligation of the GoI. Those claiming it's Congress that's instigating the farmers are blind not to see the lakhs of farmers trying to enter Delhi from across the country. It's a fight for their lives & livelihoods & they don't need any backing or provocation," Amarinder Singh said earlier in the day.

However, Haryana CM ML Khattar on Thursday lambasted at Amarinder Singh alleging that the latter is instigating the farmers and Khattar had also stated that he will resign if MSP is altered due to new farm laws. 

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The row over Farm reform laws

Farmers have been holding protests against the three farm reform bills passed in the monsoon session of Parliament in September. Congress has been contending that the laws are anti-farmers and will impact the concept of minimum support price (MSP). However, the Centre has repeatedly assured that the MSP mechanism will continue to exist even after the new reform laws, moreover, the new laws will give the farmers the freedom to sell their produce outside of the Mandis, as against the earlier compulsion to sell only through Mandis, while having the option to sell through Mandis too if the farmers want to.

With the new laws, the farmers will also have the option to sell directly to private sector entities without being dependent on the middlemen and APMC regulators, while the Congress has contended said that the entry of private entities into farm sector will lead to the farmers being at the mercy of the corporates. State governments in Punjab, Rajasthan have passed laws negating the Centre's laws. However, BJP has contended that the laws passed by the states cannot negate the laws of the parliament at the Centre. Also, Union Minister Rao Saheb Danve revealed on October 4 that Amarinder Singh who has been vehemently protesting against the Parliament's farm laws was himself a part of the committee which studied the draft legislation of the bills.

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