Congress leader Rahul Gandhi criticized the Central government's handling of the farmers' protest, condemning the use of tear gas and arrests against demonstrators. He pledged legal guarantees for Minimum Support Price (MSP) if the I.N.D.I.A. bloc comes to power. Gandhi's remarks coincided with farmers' clashes with Haryana Police at border points as they attempted to march to New Delhi. Police responded with tear gas.
Addressing a public meeting as part of his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in Ambikapur, Chhattisgarh, Rahul Gandhi voiced his concern over the treatment of farmers, stating, "Today, farmers are heading towards Delhi, but they are being stopped, tear gas shells are being used on them, and they are being lodged in jails. They are just demanding that they should get a better return for their hard work and farm produce."
He criticized the BJP government for not implementing the suggestions of MS Swaminathan, who dedicated his life to agriculture and farmers. Gandhi highlighted Swaminathan's recommendation for farmers to have the legal right to MSP. He pledged that if the INDIA alliance comes to power at the Centre, they would provide legal guarantees for MSP to farmers.
Gandhi assured that the INDIA alliance would honor all the recommendations in the Swaminathan report after forming a government, stating, "This is our beginning. Our manifesto is being prepared. We are going to work for farmers and laborers."
Accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi of using GST and demonetization to destroy small businesses, Gandhi said, "Two types of injustice are taking place in the country. One is economic injustice, and the other is social injustice. Unemployment is spreading due to economic injustice. Big billionaires are selling Chinese goods in India. If these products were made in India, local youth would have got jobs, but Narendra Modi ji destroyed small traders with demonetization and GST."
The Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, which arrived in Chhattisgarh from neighboring Odisha on February 8, has passed through Raigarh, Sakti, and Korba districts before continuing its journey in Surguja district on Tuesday.
As farmers marched towards the national capital on Tuesday, police fired tear gas at the Punjab-Haryana Shambhu Border. Concrete slabs, iron nails, barricades, barbed wires, and police and paramilitary personnel were deployed at Kurukshetra in Haryana in anticipation of the 'Delhi Chalo' march by the farmers.
The protesting farmers have presented a list of 12 demands to the central government. Among their key demands is the enactment of a law guaranteeing Minimum Support Price (MSP) for all crops, in line with the Swaminathan Commission report. They are also calling for a comprehensive debt waiver program and the establishment of a pension scheme for farmers and farm laborers. Additionally, they vehemently oppose the Electricity Amendment Bill 2020 and advocate for the reinstatement of the Land Acquisition Act of 2013, ensuring farmers' consent and compensation set at four times the collector rate.