Lok Sabha Speaker disallows notices on farm issues moved by Cong, SAD, AAP

New Delhi, July 19

Farmers’ issues resonated in Parliament on the very first day of the monsoon session with several Opposition parties, including the Congress, Shiromani Akali Dal, Aam Aadmi Party and BSP, moving adjournment motions to discuss the matter, raising slogans in the well of both Houses and preventing Prime Minister Narendra Modi from introducing the newly inducted ministers.

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla disallowed the notices with all parties vowing to continue pressing the demand.

Cong MPs protest at Jantar Mantar, SAD leaders outside house

• Congress MPs Manish Tewari, JS Gill, Gurjeet Aujla, Amar Singh, Chaudhary Santokh Singh and Preneet Kaur on Monday protested at Jantar Mantar demanding repeal of the farm laws
• SAD leaders Sukhbir Singh Badal, Harsimrat Kaur, BSP’s Satish Chandra Mishra and other MPs of the Akali-BSP combine also protested outside Parliament to seek the laws’ withdrawal

Congress Lok Sabha MPs Manish Tewari, JS Gill and Amar Singh; Akali Dal’s Harsimrat Kaur Badal and AAP’s Punjab president Bhagwant Mann gave notices demanding that the business of the House be suspended to discuss farm laws and their repeal as sought by farmers. Harsimrat’s notice was also signed by DMK, BSP, CPM and RLP leaders.

Every party flagged the farmers’ stir, the deaths of protesters and the urgency to address the cause.

“The three black laws were pushed through the House in utter disregard of the opposition by farmers, farm labourers and farm traders. The House has not even paid obituary references to several hundreds of farmers who sacrificed their lives during this struggle. The Lok Sabha must include names of martyrs of the farmers’ movement and pay them tributes,” Bathinda MP Harsimrat Badal said in her notice.

Tewari’s notice said the farm laws had been opposed on the grounds that these would make the farmers vulnerable to exploitation by the corporate sector. “The government has failed to assuage the concerns of the farmers or present any viable alternative to these Acts,” he said. Sangrur MP Bhagwant Mann said farmers had been protesting on Delhi borders for over eight months. “Hundreds of ‘annadatas’ have been martyred. We must take up the matter on priority,” Mann said. Meanwhile, Congress Rajya Sabha MP Partap Singh Bajwa has given a notice to seek adjournment of Rajya Sabha proceedings on Tuesday to discuss farmers’ concerns and the farm laws’ repeal. — TNS