Harsimrat Badal Urges Government to Address Farmers' Demands in Lok Sabha

New Delhi, Dec 16 (NationPress) Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader and Bathinda MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal on Monday made a heartfelt appeal to the Union government to fulfill the demands of farmers, which include making the minimum support price (MSP) a legal guarantee, to safeguard the life of farmer leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal, who has now been on a fast unto death for 21 days.

While highlighting Dallewal's deteriorating health in the Lok Sabha, Harsimrat Badal referenced a previous commitment made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to accept all farmers’ demands during the repeal of the three controversial agriculture laws four years ago.

“A commitment was made to form a committee that would review all farmers' demands, yet despite the loss of 700 farmers during the Kisan Andolan, these requests remain unaddressed,” she lamented.

Harsimrat Badal expressed concern over the government's response and noted that despite the Supreme Court's instructions to both state and central authorities to contact Dallewal to persuade him to end his fast, a low-ranking official was sent who could only listen without providing any meaningful solutions.

She emphasized the urgency of the situation, calling for immediate action to save Dallewal's life by acceding to his demands, which include provisions for MSP, debt relief, pensions for farmers and agricultural workers, assurances against rising electricity tariffs for the agricultural sector, withdrawal of police cases, and justice for victims of the 2021 Lakhimpur Kheri incident.

Additionally, she criticized the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Punjab for failing to convey the seriousness of the situation to the Union government, stating, “The AAP government has utterly failed to communicate the gravity of the circumstances given that the farmer leader's fast has reached the 21-day mark.”