The Supreme Court of India on Tuesday issued an interim order to put a stay on the three new controversial farm laws until the next orders in view of the ongoing protests by farmers. The top court also ordered to form a committee comprising of experts and members to carry out negotiations between the government and the farmer’s unions in order to reach a consensus. The court also rejected most explanations of the central government, which stated that these farm laws have been made out after prolonged considerations for agricultural reforms.
Don’t want blood on our Hands, Says Supreme Court CJI
While hearing a batch of petitions challenging the farm laws, Chief Justice of India (CJI) said that these are matters of life and death, and the court is also concerned with the lives and property of people affected by the ongoing agitation. On the previous day’s hearing on Monday, the CJI ‘SA Bobde’ came down very heavily on the Centre government for not handling the particular issue.
It also asked the central government to reach a solution, or else the court will. There have been eight rounds of talks between the government and the farmer unions, but have not yielded any positive outcomes. The Supreme Court also said we don’t want any injuries or blood on our hands and is trying to solve the problem in the best way.
Farmers in India on Roads for Protests since Two Months
Indian farmers, especially from the northern states of Haryana and Punjab have been camping and protesting on the border points of the capital New Delhi since November 26, 2020, against the 3 contentious farm laws which were passed last September. The farmers, including the elderly and women, are fighting the biting cold of the capital as they have settled on the borders for almost 2 months now. They have strongly condemned the farm laws introduced by the government and have demanded nothing less than the repeal of these laws. The farmers believe that the new laws will take away the decades-old system of receiving concessions and subsidies on their farm produce. They fear that these farm laws will cause huge financial instability and will leave them at the mercy of corporate companies.
The 8th round of negotiations which was held on Friday last week ended in a deadlock again, with the central government saying that there is no question of repealing the farm laws. The farmer union representatives have stated clearly that they will return home only when the laws are repealed. Also, farmer unions added that the central government cannot interfere in agriculture matters Supreme Court orders have declared farming as a state subject.
Farmers rule out Supreme Court orders of Stay; Want Total Repeal of laws
When asked by the media, farmers ruled out the importance of ‘staying’ the farm laws temporarily and said that they only wanted repeal of the laws. The farmers also had a union meeting at the ‘Sindhu border’ to discuss the developments. Many farmers have expressed doubt on the panel as they believe those included in the committee decided by the supreme court have backed the farms’ laws previously and they will serve no good in helping the farmer’s protests. Farmers also said that “now is not the time for a committee”.
The farmers are also planning a Tractor rally in the capital on Republic Day i.e. on 26th January if their demands to scrap the contentious farm laws are not accepted. Regarding this, the central government has appealed to the Supreme Court against the tractor rally agitation saying that the right to protest cannot be agreed on the stake of the integrity and pride of the Nation.
