Annual new Farm Laws: Congress declared that it would be submitting a memorandum to President Ram Nath Kovind, which would be carrying about two crore signatures opposing the newly introduced farm laws. Former Congress President Rahul Gandhi said that he would lead a protest March to the Rashtrapati Bhawan on Thursday, December 24, urging Kovind to intervene and annul the contested agricultural laws. Gandhi added that he would be joined by all Congress MPs and leaders in the March.

Congress launched an extensive signature campaign to bring a collective appeal of over two crore men to the President, as a last resort to push for complete repealing of the contentious farm laws, introduced in September. The memorandum has been signed by the farmers, farm labourers and other stake holders opposing these laws right from their introduction in the Parliament.

“Around 2 crore signatures, urging the intervention of the President for the withdrawal of the three legislations, have been collected till now,” said a statement by KC Venugopal, General Secretary (organistion).

The Congress General Secretary highlighted that the party strongly condemned the laws

which thousands of farmers from Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan and elsewhere have been protesting for past 27 days on various border points of Delhi including Singhu and Tikri demanding complete roll back of the three farm laws.  The three contested farm laws included – The Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation), Act, 2020, The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.

Indian farmers protest is emerging as a strongest protest movement witnessed by the current era against the government’s push favouring capitalist forces. The country’s agricultural community believed that these newly introduced legislations favoured big corporations, leaving vulnerable farmers in a weaker spot. Modi government’s inability to take any definitive stand over the issue of Minimum Support Price (MSP) made farmers more anxious as it left more room to alter things in future.

Venugopal also condemned the centre government for failing to bring a resolution to the matter and defending the laws which empowered big corporates. The party also slammed the Modi government for manipulating media reporting over the matter and pushing across surveys favouring anti-farm laws. In a crackdown over farmers’ protests Government even pressurised various social media forums to taken down pro-farmers protest forums.

“The arrogant government having initially duped the farmers by putting on a conciliatory face soon made its intransigence apparent. It has become absolutely clear that the Modi government is only committed to the welfare of large corporates instead of innocent farmers and farm labourers,” said the Congress’s statement. 

To gather support for the ongoing protest, Rahul Gandhi and Congress leaders also undertook an extensive ‘Tractor Yatra’ across Punjab and Haryana against the farm laws also deemed as black laws.