LAW AND DISORDER

The courts step in to end the impasse between farmers and the government, but the farmers want nothing less than a repeal of the farm laws

- ANILESH S. MAHAJAN

As the national capital settled in for its coldest winter in the past 15 years, it did little to thaw the tensions between the government and the protesting farm unions. However, in a ‘dramatic’ intervention on January 12, the Supreme Court bench of Chief Justice S.A. Bobde, A.S. Bopanna and V. Ramasubramaniam suspended the implementation of the new farm laws and set up a four-member expert committee to hear the farm unions. But if they thought this would placate the agitating farmers, they were mistaken, as the farmers refused to appear before the expert committee, saying they would rather continue the dialogue with the Centre. They are also sticking to their demand of a complete rollback of the new Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, the Farmers’ (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020 ,and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act 2020.

The farmers’ unions have been on the warpath since September 22, when Parliament cleared these laws which, if Prime Minister Narendra Modi is to be believed, will usher in Farm Revolution 2.0. The unions laid siege on the outskirts of the national capital Delhi, blocking the borders connecting neighbouring Haryana at Tikri and Singhu villages.