Punjab BJP chief: 'Where were they when ordinances were proposed?'

As agitated farmers in Punjab and its neighbouring states continue to protest, squatting on roads under the scorching sun, against the NDA government’s decision to pass three contentious farm bills in Parliament despite opposition, it has turned into a catch-22 situtation for the Punjab BJP. On the one hand, its alliance partner in Punjab, SAD has voted against these bills in Parliament, and on the other, the saffron party’s bid to make inroads in rural Punjab may also take a massive hit.Punjab BJP president Ashwani Sharma shared his views on various aspects of these farm bills. Excerpts :
How do you see your alliance partner SAD voting against three farm bills in Parliament? Why did the SAD change its stand at the last hour even though party patriarch Parkash Singh Badal had himself applauded these bills earlier?
Only (SAD president) Sukhbir Badal can answer this question. I do not want to comment on him. When Parkash Singh Badal had made the statement that these are pro-farmer bills, then what happened overnight? Only they can answer this question and you should ask them the reason for backtracking. Our stand is very clear, that these are revolutionary bills which would provide independence to farmers.
Don’t you see it as a setback for the party in rural Punjab when the BJP-led NDA government has passed these bills despite farmers’ agitations? The BJP has not even been able to convince its own ally SAD.
SAD will also understand. It is not a setback. In the coming days, when farmers will benefit from these bills, it would strengthen the BJP and its cadre. The BJP-led NDA government has always kept farmers’ interest above all and you have various examples like the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi, where a farmer gets Rs 6,000 per year in three instalments.
What if SAD decides to end the alliance in Punjab as they claim to not have been consulted on these bills?
SAD is an independent political party. So is the BJP. Though we are alliance partners, SAD has the right to conduct its core group meeting and take own decisions. Therefore, I won’t comment on this issue.
We are very clear that the Modi government at the Centre has come up with these farm bills to double the income of farmers. We do not have any doubt about it. It is also unfortunate that the Congress party is using farmers to protest against these farm bills by creating doubts in their minds. The Modi government has made it clear that the minimum support price (MSP) on crops would continue to remain in the future as well, like it is now. The mandi system will also continue and farmers who want to sell their produce at MSP can sell through mandis. But even after 73 years of the Independence, you cannot bind a farmer to selling his farm produce at MSP when he can get more price in the open market.
At the same time, these bills would now ensure the safety of farmers’ land. Earlier, there used to be cases where a farmer would give his land for contract farming to others and these people would grab it after some years through change in girdawari.
Why are farmers on roads in Punjab and other states if these bills are in their interests?
Farmers are innocent. Ask those parties which are misguiding them whether they have themselves read the legistations. We are still ready to clarify every doubt. I had myself gone to meet these two farmers’ leaders (Balbir Singh Rajewal and Ajmer Singh Lakhowal) at their homes and held at least a 45 minute meeting each to clarify their doubts. Farmers’ doubts will be cleared in the upcoming paddy procurement season itself, when the Centre would ensure paddy procurement at MSP.
Why the tearing hurry to present these three bills in Parliament? Don’t you think these should have first been sent to parliamentary select committees? Even your ally SAD was demanding the same.
There is no ambiguity in these bills. I want to ask those who are now raising questions: where were they when these farm ordinances were proposed? Why did they not submit their suggestions? They are now saying (what they are) just for the sake of it. It took 73 years for the farmers to get their rights.
Even BJP national president J P Nadda said in his press conference how these bills were mentioned by the Congress party in its manifesto. Now they are opposing these bills. Even the Congress government in Punjab had come up with the Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee Act in 2017 which contained similar provisions. Why the double standards? Punjab government doesn’t have any achievement and they want to hide their failures and scams by diverting people’s attention by raking up irrelevant issues. They do not have any reply to queries regarding the post matric scholarship scam involving the cabinet minister, mining scam, liquor scam, hooch tragedy and many other irregularities.
There is already MSP on 22 crops but only paddy and wheat are being procured by the government agencies and farmers are forced to sell the other 20 crops below the MSP.
That is why these bills have been brought. The Centre is very clear that the MSP as well as procurement process will continue without any change. But those farmers who think they can get price for their produce more than the government MSP, have now been given the freedom to sell crops in private market.
The Centre announces the MSP on maize but it gives no commitment for its procurement. Even agriexperts and politicians advocate that maize can play a big role in crop diversification.
If maize is being sold below the MSP, the state government can claim the difference between the actual selling price of maize and the MSP from the Centre. But the Congress government in Punjab has never claimed it from the Centre and they boast of protecting the interests of farmers. Whereas, the BJP governments in Haryana and Madhya Pradesh have been claiming this benefit for farmers from the central government.
Now that all the three contentious farm bills have been passed in Parliament, how would the Punjab BJP face the farming community?
The Punjab BJP unit will come up with a strategy to again approach farmers in villages so as to make them understand the benefits of these bills in simple Punjabi language so that they can easily understand and ensure that they are not misguided.