Terming the legislation a direct and deliberate assault by the Centre on the interests of farmers, Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Tuesday said the State Congress will challenge the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020, which was passed in the Lok Sabha, in the court of law.
“Riding roughshod over the concerns of the farmers, the Central government, of which the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) is a constituent, has imposed a Central law on a State subject, thus eroding the federal structure of the country,” said the Chief Minister in a statement. “We will challenge it in court,” he added.
Captain Amarinder said the enactment of the legislation is clearly a step towards abolition of the MSP regime. “It is a conspiracy on the part of the BJP-led NDA government to destroy Punjab and its farmers,” he said,
“The legislation talks of encouraging competition among farmers. Do they really expect the poor farmers, who are only competing with themselves for survival every day, to rival big corporates for protecting their interests?” quipped the Chief Minister.
Pointing out that the enactment, along with the other two agriculture ordinances that the Centre has already tabled in the Lok Sabha, was in line with the recommendations of the Shanta Kumar committee, Capt. Amarinder said the same committee had also suggested dismantling of the MSP regime.
“It is evident that the NDA government is now moving towards the elimination of the MSP system, which is the lifeline of the farmers,” he said, adding that the Punjab Congress will not allow the interests of the farming community to be trampled in this manner.
