Javadekar slams Congress as 'middlemen for middlemen'

Union Minister Prakash Javadekar attacked the opposition over ongoing protests against Farm Acts by terming them as "middlemen for middlemen". He also added that the reforms were mentioned in the Congress manifesto and expressed doubt if the protestors were real farmers.

Panaji: Union Minister Prakash Javadekar on Sunday alleged that parties opposing the newly enacted farm laws were acting as "middlemen for middlemen".

Talking to reporters on the second day of his visit in Goa as part of the ruling BJP's initiative to create awareness about the farm laws, Javadekar said, in reality, farmers earn less for their produce and customers buy it at higher rates. The middlemen hike the prices and the farm laws deal with this problem by eradicating these middlemen, he said.

"Sometimes, I feel the opposition parties have become middlemen for middlemen," he alleged. Claiming that the agitation against farm laws will wither away, the minister said, "Falsehood has limited life while truth lives forever. Congress and Nationalist Congress Party launched their campaign to protest against the farm bills. I am going to ask them to look at their manifesto. Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had spoken about the agricultural reforms in his speeches. But, the Congress has taken a u-turn," he said.

He alleged that the opposition parties were spreading "myth" that Agriculture Produce Market Committees, APMC will be shut down under the new laws and the government will stop purchasing the produce, put off the minimum support price (MSP) "All these are lies," Javadekar said.

Read:Don't fall prey to politics over farm laws: Javadekar to Goan farmers

The BJP leader also said that the conduct of opposition leaders in the Rajya Sabha over the passage of these bills was "condemnable and shameful".Referring to the protest by a group of people on his way to Mapusa town on Saturday, Javadekar said he doubts if those who were protesting were real farmers. He said that 60 per cent population of the country is involved in the farming sector, but their contribution to the GDP (gross domestic product) is only 15 per cent. It is important to increase productivity and expose them to global market so that their standard of living improves, he said.

Javadekar said when he was in school, the country's population was 30 crore, which has now increased to 138 crores,but despite that, there is no shortage of food." We are thankful to farmers who have been feeding our country," he said, adding that it is the responsibility of the government to increase their income.

The Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020, The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020 and The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill 2020 became law after getting the presidential assent recently.

(PTI)