Mr Pawar also warned that the farmers’ agitation may spread from Delhi’s borders to other parts of the country if the Government does not take a decision soon.
Mumbai| Former Union agriculture minister and NCP chief Sharad Pawar on Friday, at a time when deadlock between the farmers and the government has entered the third week, slammed the Centre for not heeding the advice of Opposition parties and hurrying the new agriculture laws through Parliament. The Maharashtra veteran also cautioned the government against testing the patience of farmers.
Sharad Pawar, talking to reporters in Mumbai, also warned that the farmers’ agitation may spread from Delhi’s borders to other parts of the country if the Government does not take a decision soon.
“When these Bills were tabled before Parliament, it was conveyed to the Government that even though it was possible for them at that moment to clear these important Bills without any discussion, there was bound to be a reaction from the farmers at a later stage. But the Government did not pay heed to this and cleared these Bills with a nominal discussion of 15-20 minutes,” Mr Pawar said.
“Today, the farmers have taken an extreme position that if the state wants a solution out of this present agitation, it needs to first withdraw these Bills,” Mr Pawar stressed.
“The Centre, however, does not seem to be receptive to this demand and this struggle may be prolonged for a few more days… The farmer is the food provider of our country. It is my request to the Centre that it should not test their patience anymore,” he added.
The NCP chief, whose party is a part of the ruling coalition in Maharashtra, also said that given the Centre’s stance, the deadlock may continue and even spread. “I have got information that 700 tractors full of farmers have joined the protests today. If a quick decision is not taken, these protests can spread,” Pawar said.
When asked about Raosaheb Danve’s remarks about “China-Pak” link to the farmers’ protest, the Rajya Sabha MP said: “Some people do not have the sense of what should be said where and how. We should not pay attention to such comments.”
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