Sonia Gandhi asks Congress-ruled states to pass laws to bypass Centre's farm reforms

Congress President Sonia Gandhi on Monday asked chief ministers of states ruled by the party to explore the possibility of enacting state laws to circumvent the new farm sector laws that have triggered protests in parts of the country.

In an advisory to the Congress-ruled states of Punjab, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Puducherry, Sonia asked the Chief Ministers to explore the possibility of passing laws under Article 254 (2) of the Constitution which allows state legislatures to pass a law to negate the “anti-agriculture central laws encroaching upon the state’s jurisdiction".

“This would enable the states to bypass the unacceptable anti-farmer provisions of the three draconian agricultural laws, including the abolition of MSP and disruption of APMCs, in Congress-ruled states,” AICC General Secretary K C Venugopal said.

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In doing so, the Congress has picked a leaf out of late union minister Arun Jaitley’s strategy book when the Modi government had in 2015 failed to amend the land acquisition law passed by the UPA-II government due to lack of majority in the Rajya Sabha.

Jaitley had then asked BJP-ruled states to invoke Article 254 (2) to override the provisions of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013.

However, even if Congress-ruled states pass such bills, they cannot be turned into laws till they receive the assent of the respective governors and the president.

Sonia's advice to Chief Ministers came on a day Congress leaders hit the streets to protest the Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act and the amendments to the Essential Commodities Act.

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh participated in a sit-in protest in the state against the enactment of the three laws and declared that he was exploring legal options to challenge them in the Supreme Court.

READ: Congress trying to do politics in the name of farmers: BJP over tractor-burning incident near India Gate

Singh said the farmers' protests in the state could lead to unrest, which could be utilised by Pakistan’s ISI to foment trouble in the country.

“Pak-backed forces will try to feed on the angst in India,” the Chief Minister said, pointing out that 150 terrorists had been nabbed in Punjab in recent months with a huge cache of arms and ammunition.

Elsewhere, Congress leaders petitioned the governors of respective states urging them to ask the Centre to roll back the three laws.

The national capital witnessed dramatic scenes as Youth Congress activists set ablaze a tractor near the India Gate.