Evenas he termed their Republic Day Tractor Rally a testimony to the celebration ofthe Indian Republic and its Constitutional ethos, Punjab Chief Minister CaptainAmarinder Singh on Saturday appealed to the farmers to ensure that the eventremains peaceful, just as their anti-Farm Law protests have been so far, whileurging the Centre once again to heed the troubled voice of the farmingcommunity in the true spirit of the Indian Republic.
“Peacehas been the hallmark of your (farmers’) democratic protests all these months,and should remain integral to your agitation in the days ahead, including theR-Day Tractor Rally into the national capital,” said the Chief Minister, in hisRepublic Day eve message.
“Thesight of your (farmers’) tractors on Delhi roads tomorrow will underline thefact that the ethos of the Indian Constitution and the essence of our Republicis inalienable and uncompromisable,” he said, adding that the farmers’ arduousbattle for survival “will always remind us of this truth, and it will alwayshelp us remember (lest we forget), that the principles on which stands theedifice of the India we know, and our forefathers strove to build, cannot bedestroyed or demolished on the whims of a few.”
Lamentingthat the federal structure on which India’s polity is founded is facing one ofits biggest threats under the present Indian regime, the Chief Minister saidthat the brazen manner in which the three Farm Laws were pushed through,without debate or discussion, cannot, and should not be accepted in the world’slargest democracy. The Centre had absolutely no power to legislate on a statesubject, which Agriculture is, and the implementation of the farm legislationsviolate every principle of our Constitution and the federal structure it standsfor, he added.
TheChief Minister said their collective fight, in which his government wasstanding shoulder to shoulder with the farmers, was aimed at protecting thefederal core of the Indian Constitution.
“Westand by every farmer whose sweat and blood has nurtured Punjab’s soil fordecades, and without whom India today would not stand tall as a self-reliantnation. Besides compensation and job for one family member of each of thedeceased farmers, we shall extend any other help their families may need. Weshall continue also to reach out to the families of those still camping at theDelhi border to make their voice heard by the Government of India,” saidCaptain Amarinder, reaching out to every farmer and their families in Punjab.
Heextended his respects to all those farmers who had lost their lives in theprolonged agitation, which could have been avoided in the first place or couldhave been brought to an end long back had the “insensitive” Government ofIndia, led by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) not chosen to stand onunwarranted ego. There was no justification, said the Chief Minister, for theCentral Government’s adamant refusal to repeal the Farm Laws, which, in anycase, have been implemented arbitrarily without consultation or discussion withthe farmers and other stakeholders.
Recallingthe contribution of Punjab’s farmers to India’s self-reliance and progress, theChief Minister said they did not toil with their sweat and blood to see anation whose
Constitutionalideals of justice, liberty, equality and dignity, were being systemicallytrampled over the past 6 years, most notably over the past 2 months of their struggle.
“Thevoice of the farmers, and in fact every section of our populace, is beingsubjugated, and we have to ensure that their voice is not only heard but alsoheeded,” he asserted, adding that the celebration of the Indian Republic wouldnot be complete without the acknowledgement of this contribution of Punjab andits farmers to India’s progress. “And it would be rendered meaningless unlessthe Centre has the humility to accept that it has done wrong to us, and makesimmediate amends by repealing the Farm Laws to start on a fresh slate, afterdue discussions with the farmers, as well as the government of Punjab and all othersstates directly affected by their decisions on agricultural issues,” he said,adding, “that would be in the true spirit of India’s Republic andConstitution.”