JOIN USHigh drama in Rajya Sabha over two Farm Bills; Oppn demands voting to be postponed
High drama was witnessed in Rajya Sabha on Sunday as the voting on two contentious agriculture-related bills was taken up.
The trouble started at 1 pm, the scheduled closing of the proceedings, when Deputy Chairman Harivansh Kumar went ahead after a request from the government.
However, Opposition parties demanded that the discussion and voting on the Bill be taken up on Monday morning and that there was no consensus on extending the timing.
As Harivansh went ahead and allowed Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar to continue his reply, Opposition MPs from Congress, Trinamool Congress and AAP among others went to the Well of the House shouting slogans.
Soon after Tomar finished his reply, Harivansh started the voting proceedings amid Opposition sloganeering.
Trinamool Congress floor leader Derek O'Brien then went to the Chair waving the Rule Book. One of the MPs even touched the microphone of the Chair even as more lawmakers rushed to the Well of the House.
As the pandemonium continued, Harivansh adjourned the House till 1:41 pm.
The Opposition parties are against The Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill and Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill and want them to be sent to a Select Committee.
Amid Opposition expressing concern that the Bills will lead to doing away with the Minimum Support Price (MSP), Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar said MSP will continue and is not related to the legislations that seek freedom for farmers to sell their produce.
"There are misconceptions being spread about the minimum support price (MSP). MSP is the government's administrative decision and not linked to the bills. MSP based procurement was there in the country, is there, and will continue," he said adding these "historic" legislation will bring "revolutionary" changes in the lives of farmers.
Initiating the debate from the Opposition, Congress' Pratap Singh Bajwa said his party opposes the "ill-conceived and ill-timed" Bills. "We will not sign on this death warrant of farmers," Singh said.
However, BJP's Bhupender Yadav countered the Congress saying, "I want to ask why has rural income reduced in the years you (Congress) were in power...Why are you opposing these Bills? Opposition always has a negative outlook on things."
Opposing the Bills, Trinamool Congress floor leader Derek O'Brien said the credibility of the Modi government is low to make promises. "The Prime Minister is saying that the Opposition is misleading the farmers. You (Centre) said double farmer income by 2022. But, at current rates, the farmer income will not be doubled before 2028," he said.
Asking how many BJP MPs have read the Bills and demanding the Bill be sent to the Select Committee, O'Brien said the bill need to be scrutinised. "We can't do six minutes here, eight minutes there. We will keep fighting for our democratic right in parliament. You may have numbers, but we have the right to keep our say in a parliament democracy. We are following a very dangerous trend," he added.
Samajwadi Party leader Ramgopal Yadav said there is "definitely some compulsion" that this government wants to rush through all these bills.
The resignation of Akali Dal's Harsimrat Kaur from the Union Cabinet protesting against the Bills came up during discussion. Shiv Sena's Sanjay Raut said the Prime Minister has noted the government was not ending the MSP system and it was just a rumour. "So, did a union minister resign on the basis of a rumour?" he said.
Akali Dal MP Naresh Gujral demanded that the Bills be sent to Select Committees. "These Bills should be sent to a select committee so that all stakeholders can be heard. Don't think that the farmers of Punjab are weak. The farmer of Punjab feels threatened today by the bills you are about to pass. There is a trust deficit or a communication gap," he said.
The debate also had its share of drama when YSR Congress' Vijaysai Reddy made a remark against Congress, which was expunged. Reddy said there was no reason to oppose these Bills and made the remark, prompting Congress Deputy Leader Anand Sharma and others to demand an apology.