New Delhi: A member of the Supreme Court-appointed committee — formed to resolve the stalemate between the Centre and the farmers over the three farm laws — has said repealing the legislations is not an option, but they will suggest amendments after hearing out the farmers.
Anil Ghanwat, president of the Maharashtra-based Shetkari Sanghatana and one of the members of the committee, told ThePrint in an interview that most of the demands of the agitating farmers are “justified”, including making MSP a legal provision. He also said the protesting farmers are doing a “great service” by making agriculture the centre of discussions.
The committee will sit for its first meeting Tuesday at the Indian Agricultural Research Institute in Pusa, New Delhi, and start the consultation process with the farmer groups from 21 January.
Although the protesting farmers have refused to meet the panel members, Ghanwat said, “We are open to meeting the protesting farmers. We have no ego issue.
“If they will not come to our door, we are open to going to the protest sites. The real issue is to address their concerns and make agriculture a viable option.”
The committee initially had four members — BKU president Bhupinder Singh Mann, Ghanwat and agriculture economists Ashok Gulati, and Dr Pramod Joshi. Mann, however, quit the panel on 14 January, saying he is “ready to sacrifice any position so as not to compromise the interest of Punjab and farmers of the country”.
A protesting farmer group, Bhartiya Kisan Union (Lokshakti), filed a petition in the Supreme Court last week, seeking to replace the remaining panel members and urged it to nominate members who can get the job done “on the basis of harmony”.
Although farmer groups have claimed that all the panel members have supported the farm laws, Ghanwat refuted the allegation.
“It is wrong to say that we are the government’s men. When the ban on the export of onion was enforced in Maharashtra and our onion prices crippled and export of onion came down to 40 per cent, we called farmers to gherao BJP leaders if the ban is not lifted. The government then lifted the ban,” he told ThePrint.
Ghanwat also said they “have worked with Punjab farmer unions in many protests earlier, which is why the whole campaign against their neutrality is not well-founded”.
“Not only Mann, who recused himself from the committee, has worked with Punjab farmers, but I along with Sharad Joshi (a member of his organisation) gheraoed Punjab Vidhan Sabha with Punjab farmers in 1984 when there was a protest related to MSP.”
Ghanwat also said Punjab farmers “are doing a great service to the nation by highlighting the anomalies in laws”.
“Every government has taken the farmers for granted. We are obliged to the farmers of Punjab who have made agriculture the centre of debate. They have pressured the government to hear their concerns. This is the time to make historic amendments in the laws,” Ghanwat added.
‘If laws are repealed, no govt will try to bring in reforms’
Ghanwat told ThePrint when all the panel members will meet Tuesday, they will discuss the contours of deliberation and the consultation process, but “repeal is definitely not an option”.
“If it is repealed, no government will make an effort to carry out reforms in any sector. Passage of a bill is such a lengthy process in the Parliament, so everything can be done by incorporating amendments. There are many anomalies in the laws and most of the demands of the farmers are justified. So after hearing them, we will provide a more comprehensive solution on their three-four demands,” he said.
Reached for comment, Gulati told ThePrint, “We will listen to all stakeholders in all states, then we will come to a conclusion. There are many issues involved in the farmers’ demands and the government’s response (to them).”
‘Pitfalls’ in the laws
On the anomalies in the farm laws, Ghanwat said “there are several pitfalls in the laws, which need to be rectified”.
“What is the purpose of revenue officers dealing with farmers’ disputes? Farmers have no trust in these revenue officers, most of whom are corrupt. The dispute redressal mechanism through court is also not a very good option. Court cases take 20 years to complete. Where are the resources with farmers to fight court cases? There should be small tribunals assigned with a time frame to address disputes,” he said.
“Essential Commodities Act needs to be more farmer-friendly. Right now, every government manipulates pricing of farmers’ produce according to their election and political narrative. When there is a need to export farmers’ produce, they restrict export in the name of price stabilisation, but after a few months they start importing the same item. There is a big cartel that operates in this import-export mechanism in the name of price stabilisation.”
“What happened to the onion export ban and import of pulses? Our onion export has come down to 40 per cent in recent years. Many countries have moved on to more reliable exporters. International markets don’t work on unpredictable behaviour. The Indian government’s policies function on its whims and fancies. Farmers don’t get good prices, this needs to be changed in the Essential Commodities Act. Price guarantee is one of the aspects which needs to be done legally,” Ghanwat added.
The Modi government is meeting the protesting farmer unions again Tuesday for the 10th round of discussions to find out a way to convince them.
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