The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked Solicitor General Tushar Mehta to set up a committee comprising representatives of farmers unions across India, the Central government and other stakeholders to resolve the issue. The bench headed by Chief Justice of India S.A. Bobde and Justices A.S. Bopanna and V. Ramasubramanian was hearing the batch of pleas seeking the removal of farmers who are protesting on the borders of Delhi against the Centre’s three farm laws.
The Court said it’s a matter of national importance as such issue needs to be resolved through negotiations. The Court said there will be a need to form a committee including Bharatiya Kisan Union, farmers organisations from across India and government representatives to negotiate a solution. The CJI remarked it will soon become a national issue. The Court will hear the matter on Thursday and asked the petitioner to implead farmers unions as parties in the petition.
A PIL had been filed in the Supreme Court against the farmers’ protest outside Delhi seeking the removal of farmers from the border areas of Delhi-NCR. The petition states that this demonstration would increase the spread of Covid-19. At the same time, people are also having trouble in commuting. It has been also alleged in the petition that the authorities should be ordered to open the border immediately. Also, the protest should be shifted to an earmarked place with norms such as social distancing and masks etc in place.
The petitioner said the protesters have stopped necessary emergency medical services in Delhi to stop Covid-19. Giving the example of the Apex Court verdict on the CAA protest in a petition filed by Delhi resident Rishabh Sharma, it said that public places cannot be occupied by protesters and there should be a specific place to sit. The petition further claimed that though the police offered separate place to protest, the farmers are still protesting at the boundaries of Delhi. The lives of millions of people are at risk because of the farmers who are protesting on the Delhi border, as the virus is very contagious and, if it incidentally takes the form of community spread, it will wreak havoc in the country.
An impleadment application has also been filed by a faction of the Bharatiya Kisan Union through its president Bhanu Pratap Singh seeking impleadment in DMK Rajya Sabha MP Tiruchi Siva’s plea challenging the three Farmers Acts.
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The applicant submitted that though he had sent a representation to the Centre, neither any reply has been served nor any effective step or action has been taken over the farmers agitation till date.