@RavikiranRKD
Mumbai: Probably after the 1975 Emergency, the nation may not have gone through such a turbulent phase wherein the very existence of the democratic system has been shaken and attempts are being made to stamp the Prime Minister as a dictator. The dreadful war of words, mainly fought through the social media platforms, hastens one to conclude that the political system is fast losing the sense of responsibility and accountability.
Today, a supporter of the agitation is labelled as the supporter of Opposition parties, and one who opposes is labelled as a member of the saffron brigade. Hostilities have assumed such a serious proportion that quality debates involving experts from agriculture marketing have become rare due to the fear of trolling and witch-hunting. A bitter war of words is on using social media tools that are creating a divide in society, targeting individuals, questioning morality.
The right to agitate has become the right to aggravate at one’s will. And the blame goes towards both- the Opposition and the ruling party, in entirety. None of them seems perturbed over the wrong precedents being set in. Notably, sane voices seem to have disappeared in the melee. The experts, economists, academicians those known for their impeccable integrity and unbiased views have preferred to remain silent and stopped expressing their views.
Time has come to remember what Bharat Ratna Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, the architect of the Constitution had said about the future of democracy while achieving social and economic objectives.
Delivering his last speech in the Constituent Assembly, he said- “If we wish to maintain democracy not merely in form, but also in fact, what must we do? The first thing in my judgment we must do is to hold fast to constitutional methods of achieving our social and economic objectives. It means we must abandon the method of civil disobedience, non-cooperation and Satyagraha. When there was no way left for constitutional methods for achieving economic and social objectives, there was a great deal of justification for unconstitutional methods. But where constitutional methods are open, there can be no justification for these unconstitutional methods. These methods are nothing but the Grammar of Anarchy and sooner they are abandoned, the better for us”.
Here, no attempt is to blame any single political outfit- neither the one who supports the agitation nor the ruling party that does not want to attach importance to it. Before coming to any conclusion, we must look back to when the Parliament approved the farm bills.
When the Parliament was debating over the bills, Congress President Sonia Gandhi was away on a foreign tour for medical treatment, her son, President-to-be Rahul was accompanying her. NCP Chief Sharad Pawar who headed the agriculture ministry in Dr. Manmohan Singh-led cabinet for 10 years was in Mumbai for a discussion over the Maratha reservation. In fact, what Pawar is saying about the fears expressed by farmer leaders now should have been part of the proceedings in Rajya Sabha. His detailed analysis of agriculture marketing as the former agriculture minister would certainly have been heard with rapt attention.
Another notable feature of the episode is that the bills were introduced and approved on Saturday and Sunday, the days when the Parliament rarely takes up any business. The Opposition raised objections over the manner the government wanted speedy approval to the bills. Here the blame goes to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
When important leaders from the Opposition failed to make it, the job of the ruling side automatically became simpler. In fact, a detailed discussion involving learned members from both sides could have helped to remove even a shred of doubt about the most important issue of agriculture marketing. And there is no better forum than the Parliament to take up any issue that concerns the nation most.
The Parliament or the Legislature is the right forum where all the critical, vital issues needed to be debated and discussed.
When members of the Parliament and Legislature can come together to approve a hike in their salaries and allowances why can’t they come together on key issues of public importance? Their foremost responsibility is towards people and not towards their party lines. In a democracy, the government has to be by discussion and not by resolution (of respective political parties).
Coming back to the issue of farm laws, just to politicize the issue further, states, where non-BJP parties are running the governments, have announced that they will not implement the central legislations ignoring a very basic principle that central legislation supersedes the state laws. Have we forgotten the essence of our federal structure?
Here, in the case of Maharashtra, the things are contrary to what Congress and NCP leaders say. In fact, the process of reforms in the agriculture sector began when the Congress-NCP government was in power. The private sector has been allowed for the direct purchase of agricultural produce. Well-known brands such as Reliance Fresh, Star Bazar, Big Bazar, and Nature’s Basket can approach farmers directly to purchase their produce. As many as eight brands have set up their purchase centers at agriculture produce market committees (APMCs) in Pune, Nashik, and elsewhere.
The state legislature has given approval for four amendments to the state legislation- Maharashtra State Agriculture Produce Marketing (Development & Regulation), 1963 in 2005, 2006, 2017, and 2018. The state is also batting for the contract farming as a measure to come over the agrarian crisis. Farmers are allowed to sell vegetables and fruits outside the jurisdiction of the APMCs. Even the concept of an open market- Shetkari Bazar has been implemented for the last few years where the farmers can participate in the weekly market to sell vegetables and fruits without involvement of middlemen and traders from APMCs. Farmers have made handsome profits through this concept.
Clearly, it appears as if our political system is fumbling to raise suspicions about their roles. They are left to watch how agitating farmer bodies take to the streets. After the prolonged agitation leaders across the party lines should realize that they are fast losing their grip over social and economic issues concerning people. They may have instruments such as law enforcement agencies to control or create fear among people but certainly without any veneration.
About the Author : Ravikiran Deshmukh is a senior journalist who has also served as the Media Coordinator to former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis. He can be contacted at ravikiran1001@gmail.com
