In another indication of the JD(S) being pliant on the issue of changes to farm laws, party supremo H.D. Deve Gowda on Saturday defended the party’s decision to support the passage of the Karnataka Land Reforms Bill, which has been opposed by farmers’ organisations.
Meanwhile, his son and former Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy, in a series of tweets, advised the farmers agitating in Delhi to be open to the “experiment” of changing farm laws.
Addressing a press conference, Mr. Gowda, when asked about the JD(S) supporting changes to the land reforms law, shot back that several changes had been brought to the legislation by several regimes and that the JD(S)’s commitment to farmers was “beyond question”. “I have never let farmers down any time in my life,” he said. He also sought to know if those who were protesting had really studied the Bill carefully.
Mr. Kumaraswamy, in one of his tweets, said, “I personally feel that farmers should have an open mind towards experimenting with the new legislation. But there has to be proper coordination between the Centre and the protesters.”
In another tweet, he expressed apprehension that the agitation had “started attracting the attention of not only the country, but the entire world”.
