Senior nior Congress leader Rajni Patil on Saturday criticised the central government over the recently enacted farm laws. Addressing a farmers rally here, she said more than 62 crore farmers in the country are up in arms against the three “black laws”. “Instead of fulfilling the promise of doubling farmers” income, the Modi government has taken anti-farmer steps,” she said. The three farm bills — the Farmer”s Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020 and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, 2020 — were passed by Parliament recently and subsequently got assent by President Ram Nath Kovind. The Congress, many other opposition parties and several farmers organisations have been protesting against these legislations, claiming that these will harm the interests of farmers and benefit corporates, a claim denied by the government. Patil also said the Congress would fight for the genuine rights of the people of Jammu and Kashmir who, she claimed, have undergone “numerous sufferings” during the past four years, especially after August 5, 2019, the day the Centre abrogated the special status and bifurcated the erstwhile state into two union territories. She also expressed serious concerns over the recent spurt in killings of political workers and representatives of panchayati raj institutions in the Union Territory. The Congress leader criticised the central government over its alleged failure to prevent crimes against women. Referring to the alleged gang-rape and death of a young woman in Hathras in Uttar Pradesh, she said it demonstrates the failure of the BJP to check atrocities and incidents of rape against women and ensure justice to the victims. “Such type of incidents and subsequent mishandling by the UP government have shaken the confidence of the women folk in the country,” she said. Patil, a former Member of Parliament who is in-charge of party affairs in Jammu and Kashmir, is scheduled to visit Srinagar on October 12. Jammu and Kashmir Congress committee president G A Mir, in his address, appreciated the dedication of the party cadres and said, “The Congress is still a strong force in Jammu and Kashmir as the people have realised the hollowness of the slogans of the BJP.” “Congress workers stood like a rock against the vindictive policies of the BJP and remained loyal to the party and its policies under the dynamic leadership of Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi…. Time is ripe for the party to emerge stronger in both Jammu and Kashmir regions,” Mir said.
