Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) Chief Sukhbir Singh Badal on Sunday urged President Ram Nath Kovind to not give his assent to the farm bills passed by Rajya Sabha and return them to Parliament for reconsideration.

The SAD chief said the passage of the bills marked a “sad day” for democracy and millions in the country.

Following the passing of two of the three bills, Badal said in a statement, “Democracy means a consensus, not majority oppression.”

“Please stand by the farmers, ‘kisan mazdoors’, ‘arhtiyas’, mandi labour and Dalits,” Badal urged the President.

“Please intervene on their behalf with the government. Otherwise, they will never forgive us,” he said in the statement.

“Don’t let the ‘annadata’ (farmers) starve or sleep on the roads,” he added.

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Amid an uproar by the opposition, Rajya Sabha on Sunday passed the Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020, and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020.

They were passed by Lok Sabha on Thursday. A third bill is yet to be passed in Rajya Sabha.

Akali Dal MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal had resigned from the Union cabinet in protest against the three bills, but the party remains with the ruling National Democratic Alliance.

Badal had on Saturday said that there can be no talks with the Centre until agriculture bills are taken back.

Farmers in Punjab have been protesting against the three bills.

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Their organisations have expressed apprehension that the bills would lead to the dismantling of the minimum support price (MSP) system, leaving them at the mercy of big corporates.

However, the Centre had assured that the system would stay.