Political pressure couldn’t let Manmohan Singh, Sharad Pawar implement farms laws: Agri Minister

Union Agriculture
Minister Narendra Singh Tomar on Monday said that the former Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh and the then agriculture minister Sharad Pawar wanted to bring
the same farm reforms during the UPA regime, but could not implement them due
to “political pressure”.

Addressing
representatives of 11 farmer unions Tomar said, “Many commissions, ministers, chief
minister’s and governments have made an effort to work in the direction of farm
sector reform. During the UPA regime Dr Manmohan Singh and Sharad Pawar wanted
to implement these reforms. However, due to some pressure, they couldn’t
implement these laws.”

Tomar also assured
the nation that Modi government will not take any decisions that harms the poor
farmers of India.

“Under the
leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, whatever positive steps are taken
for bringing reforms, some section has opposed them. However, these reforms
have been instrumental in changing the picture of the country,” an
official statement quoted Tomar having said in the meeting with the farm
groups.

Justifying his
government’s newly formulated yet contentious farm laws, Tomar also said that
the previous governments, farm scientists, farm bodies and chief ministers had
recommended and supported the farm reforms.

Sharad Pawar, on
the other hand said that the government should take farmers’ agitation
seriously.

“I think the
government should take the entire agitation very seriously. There has to be
dialogue & solution. I heard… there are four or five suicides. If that
type of situation is developing, it’s not good for the country”, Pawar
said.

Meanwhile, 40
farmer unions, especially from Punjab, Haryana and parts of Uttar Pradesh, are
protesting at various borders of Delhi seeking repeal of the three farm laws
for ove a month now.

The ongoing
farmers’ agitation over the three Central agriculture reform laws entered its
33rd day on Monday.

The government has
invited protesting farmers to resume talks on December 30, marking the first
conversation to be held after 25 days since the last round on December 5, which
the farmers have agreed to attend.

Marking the latest
development on farmer’s front, a farmer from Punjab’s Fazilka district
allegedly died by suicide on Sunday, consuming poison a few kilometres from the
Tikri border protest site in Delhi in solidarity with the protest, PTI
reported.

In his suicide
note, he said he was taking his life so that the government is compelled to
listen to the farmers