New Delhi, March 14 Congress leader Rahul Gandhi alleged on Saturday that the BJP-led government has not honoured its promises to farmers and is prepared to sacrifice India's agriculture for its own interests.
In a Facebook post, the leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha shared a question he asked in the House recently regarding announcing a minimum support price for crops and whether the trade agreement with the United States would change the Narendra Modi government's existing MSP policy.
"In the Lok Sabha, I asked a direct question to the government: Why has the promise of a statutory MSP – calculated at C2+50 per cent – made to farmers in 2021, not yet been implemented?
"Evading a direct response, the government merely reiterated its existing MSP policy. The government also admitted to pressuring states to discontinue MSP bonuses – a move it sought to justify, without any logical basis, in the name of 'national priorities'," Gandhi said in his post in Hindi.
He said another critical question is whether the trade agreement with the US speaks of reducing "non-trade barriers". "Does this imply an intent to undermine the MSP mechanism and government procurement?" the Congress leader asked.
"The government is also evading this question," he claimed.
"The Modi government not only refuses to honour the promises made to farmers, but it is also prepared to sacrifice Indian agriculture for the sake of its own interests," Gandhi alleged in his post.
"We will continue to raise our voices – both inside and outside Parliament – to defend farmers' rights and protect the MSP," the Congress leader asserted.