'Party committed to special status for Andhra Pradesh': Congress leader Oommen Chandy

Former Kerala chief minister and Congress leader Oommen Chandy on Wednesday said that his party was committed to the demand of the special status for Andhra Pradesh and targeted the ruling BJP government for denying it to the state.

"Congress is committed to demand special category status for the state. When the UPA was in power, the state of Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated. Congress had assured the people of the state of special category status. However, since coming to power, the BJP-led government has denied special category status," Chandy told ANI.

Chandy also accused the Centre of not holding discussions with the farmers and opposition members before the passage of the bills in the parliament.

"We strongly protest against the attitude of BJP-led centre on the three farm bills that were passed in the Parliament without any (prior) discussion with either farmers or the opposition. These bills are directly affecting the farmers of the country," Chandy alleged.

"Agriculture is a state subject. The Centre must consult states before taking any decision. They might not agree with the state government, but at least, they must listen to their opinion," he said.

The BJP-led government says it is working in the interest of farmers and if it is really concerned about their problems, proper consultations should have been held, he contended.

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What are the Farm bills?

The farm bills were passed in both houses of the parliament and led to intense chaos in Rajya Sabha due to which eight Rajya Sabha MPs were also suspended over their unruly behaviour and later the MPs staged a dharna in the parliamentary premises over their suspension. Although the opposition is vehemently opposing the bills, the Centre has contended that the bills will benefit the farmers by reducing their dependency on the government-regulated markets and middlemen. With the bills in effect, farmers will be independent and free to sell it directly to large scale corporations without needing to have any middlemen to facilitate the deals.

The Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020 aims at freeing the farmers from the constraints of the state Agriculture Produce Market Committees whereby they would be able to sell their produce anywhere. While on the other hand, The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020 guards and empowers farmers to engage with processors, large retailers, wholesalers, exporters for farm services.

(With ANI inputs, Image credit: PTI)

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