Trinamool women's wing protests against Farm Bills

Kolkata: Members of the Trinamool Congress women's wing staged a sit-in demonstration in Kolkata on Tuesday over the Farm Bills.

Around a 100 activists protested near the Mahatma Gandhi statue on Mayo Road with empty plates on which slogans such as "krishokder jonyo lorchi lorbo" (will continue to fight for the farmers) were written.

TMC women's wing president Chandrima Bhattacharya said her party will continue the protest against the "anti-farmer Bills" through various programmes in the coming days.

"These two Bills reveal the true intent of the Modi government. They are opening the farm sector to the big corporations, which will break the backbone of ordinary farmers. We won't let that happen," Bhattacharya, also a state minister, said.

Two key Farm Bills, dubbed by the government as the biggest reform in agriculture, were on Sunday passed by the Rajya Sabha by voice vote amid chaotic scenes by Opposition members who demanded that they be referred to a House panel for greater scrutiny.

The Trinamool Congress in a tweet also said the BJP was pursuing an agenda of "pseudo-nationalism" and carrying out "fascist attack" on grassroots workers of the society. "We will fight your fascism from the pavement to Parliament," it said.

Bhattachaharya said the eight suspended MPs were protesting as the Bill would affect the interests of the farmers badly and strengthen touts and middlemen. She added that the whole country had seen how the Opposition MPs were silenced and the controversial Bill passed illegally.

As the BJP did not have the requisite numbers in the Rajya Sabha, they followed the nasty trick to clear the controversial Bill. "It was a murder of democracy and the Indian Constitution. We will continue to protest against the draconian Bill," she said.

Shashi Panja, Trinamool Congress national spokesperson, said: "The suspension of the MPs shows the ugly brute majority face of the BJP. After failing to attain the requisite numbers, it passed the Bill in a hush-hush manner," she

said adding "BJP has become intolerant and is not ready to listen to the Opposition MPs after they called it an anti farmer Bill."

She also maintained: "When the farmers are on the streets, the Prime Minister is exhibiting the exuberance of what he has achieved."