New Delhi: Voicing support for the Bharat Bandh call given by farmer organisations to protest the farm bills, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi interacted with the farmers across the country to get their opinion on the reforms proposed by the Central Government through these new bills. The party has alleged that the new agriculture laws will 'enslave" farmers and the MSP will be "snatched away" from them.
Sharing a video, Gandhi tweeted, "One thing has been clear after talking to these farmers, they don't have trust even a bit in the Modi Government."
"The Voice of all of us is with the strong voice of our farmers and today, the entire country is together to oppose these agriculture bills," Rahul Gandhi tweeted in Hindi. One of the farmers from Bihar, Dheerendra Kumar told Gandhi, "This is a blind law. The poor and the farmers are being exploited."Rakesh Jakhar, Haryana, said, "If these ordinances will give benefit to the farmers then why this Government is not fixing the MSP? Farmers are working with Commission agents known as middlemen. But if these bills will be implemented, farmers will be left at the mercy of big corporates and big industrialists will make profits.
He further added, "Whatever work was done by the previous Governments for farmers, workers, businessmen, they are selling and privatizing everything."
READ: Reach out to farmers to break Opposition 'propaganda': Modi
On being asked about fear of MSP being ended, Haryana Farmer, Om Prakash Dhankad said, "It should be considered as a crime if anyone procures the crop on a lesser price than MSP."
"There was a provision of East India Company to sell the produce at a lesser price to the Corporates which they can later sell to the consumers at three or four times of the price. The same thing is happening now," said Ashok Butra, from Maharashtra.
Rudra Pratap Pandey, a farmer from Bihar, explained to Gandhi, "Earlier, we used to take money in advance from the traders to work for them. Now, they have refused to buy paddy and wheat, so how are we going to get our money?"
A Delhi Farmer, Choudhary Ramkaran Pradhan urged, "I don't think, anyone is going to save farmers. If you will take this responsibility to save farmers, it will benefit the whole country."
Farmers organisations have hit the streets to oppose Central Government's three bills including Farmers' and Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020, and Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, 2020, which got passed in Parliament recently.
Rahul Gandhi said in his concluding remarks, "We have to oppose these bills, not for the farmers but for the future of India. Voice of the farmer is in the youth, Army, Police, and this voice is very powerful. We got our independence by using this voice. Once again, India will get its independence by farmers voice."
READ: Farm bills row: Congress to protest till demands are met
