Farmers’ body moves SC, says new farm laws will make them vulnerable to corporate greed

Bharatiya Kisan Union has approached the Supreme Court challenging the validity of recently enacted three farm laws, which has triggered massive farmers' protests at Delhi borders.

Farmers’ union president Bhanu Pratap Singh filed an intervention application in the PIL filed by DMK MP Tiruchi Siva against the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020, the Farmer's Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.

The plea claimed if the present laws are allowed to continue, "we are going to completely ruin our country as the corporates can, with one stroke, export our agriculture produce without any regulation, and may even result in famines.”

Maintaining that these laws are illegal and arbitrary, the organisation claimed they would pave way for cartelisation and commercialisation of agricultural produce.

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The plea argued that the new farm laws are unconstitutional and anti-farmer and these laws will make farmers position vulnerable to corporate greed of multinational companies.

“That these laws would dismantle the Agriculture Produce Market Committee (APMC) system intended to ensure fair prices for farm products," it claimed, adding that these laws were passed in haste.

The plea said the farmers are very much afraid that the corporates will twist and turn words to wind them in an unfavourable contract just like money lenders.

It also claimed that the amendment to the Essential Commodities Act would facilitate black marketing, thus attacking the very foundation of the agriculture fabric of the nation.

The apex court had already issued a notice on a batch of petitions filed by Siva, RJD MP Manoj Jha and others against the three farm laws.