Govt's 3 farm ordinances 'death knell' for agriculture: Congress

New Delhi: The Congress on Saturday hit out at the Centre over three farm ordinances, alleging that they would subjugate the farmers "at the altar of a handful of crony capitalists" and were a "death knell" for agriculture. The party asserted that it will oppose the ordinances both inside and outside Parliament and reach out to like-minded parties to put up a joint resistance on the issue.

The Congress' attack came amid protests by farmers, including in Haryana and Punjab, against the Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Ordinance, 2020, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Ordinance, 2020, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Ordinance, 2020.

The ordinances seek to provide barrier-free trade for farmers' produce outside notified farm mandis, and empower farmers to enter into farming agreements with private players prior to the production for sale of agri-produce.

Congress' chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala expressed solidarity with those protesting against the ordinances and said the party will fight the Modi government "tooth and nail" on this issue.

"These three draconian ordinances are a death knell for agriculture in India. They will subjugate the farmer at the altar of a handful of crony capitalists, making them labourers to toil on their own land rather than getting a remunerative price for their crop under the system of minimum support price," he said at an online press conference.

"Our floor leaders will speak to every party. They are already in touch and we will put up a joint opposition to the draconian ordinances of the Modi government aimed at subjugating the farming community and abolishing the livelihood of crores of people who are aligned with the grain markets and other market systems," he said.

Surjewala raised various issues in the ordinances that would allegedly harm the interests of the farmers.