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In a big development , The Supreme Court has stayed the implementation of controversial new farm laws till further orders and decided to set up a 4-member committee to resolve the impasse over them between the Centre and farmers’ unions protesting at Delhi borders.
A bench headed by Chief Justice S A Bobde and Justice AS Bopanna and V Ramasubramanian said that it will pass an order to this effect.
The top court stayed the implementation of the three laws — the Farmers’ (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, the Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act — against which several petitions have been filed challenging their constitutional validity.
The bench which read out four names of members of the committee said that it will look into the farmers’ grievances on the issue.
The four names of members include Bhupinder Singh Mann, President of Bhartiya Kisan Union; Anil Ghanwat, President of Shetkeri Sangthana, Maharashtra; Pramod Kumar Joshi, director for South Asia, International Food Policy Research Institute, and agriculture economist Ashok Gulati.
During the hearing, the top court sought the cooperation of the protesting farmers and made it clear that no power can prevent it from setting up a committee to resolve the impasse over the controversial farm laws.
The observation of the bench asking protesting farmers’ unions to cooperate assumes significance in view of reports that they would not go to any apex court-appointed panel for resolution of the dispute and wanted the laws to be repealed.
Before pronouncing the order, the bench commenced the hearing and asked the farmers’ unions to cooperate and go before the committee to be appointed by it to resolve the dispute.
“We are concerned about protecting the lives and property of citizens of India and we want to solve the problem,” said the bench.
In the proceedings, conducted through video conferencing, it reiterated that the apex court has powers to suspend the legislation in order to solve the problem.
