India’s supreme court has suspended a series of controversial new laws on agriculture that had motivated hundreds of thousands of farmers to stage a months-long protest in Delhi for fears that their livelihoods were at stake.
Since November, more than half a million farmers had marched on the outskirts of Delhi and occupied roads and highways heading towards the capital, setting up a 24-hour protest camp and refusing to move until the repeals were repealed. new laws.
Farmers, mainly from the states of Punjab and Haryana, had argued that the new laws were passed by the government without consultation, exposed them at the mercy of large corporations for the price of crops, and put them at greater risk of poverty and loss. their lands.
Farmers’ protests have proved to be one of the biggest political challenges facing Prime Minister Narendra Modi since he came to power in 2014. It was one of the first times the government was forced at the negotiating table after the massive unrest and despite eight rounds of talks, it had remained at a standstill.
After two days of deliberation, the Supreme Court on Tuesday decided to suspend the laws. The judges ordered the creation of a four-man committee to examine farmers’ complaints about the laws, saying they were “extremely disappointed” with how negotiations had gone so far. The judges also expressed concern over the lack of consultations with farmers in passing the law.
“It simply came to our notice then. We care about the laws. We are concerned about the lives and property of the people affected by the unrest. We try to solve the problem in the best way. One of the powers we have is to suspend the legislation, ”SA Bobde, the chief judge, told the court.
Although many politicians who had expressed their anger over agricultural laws celebrated the ruling, farmers’ leaders received a mockery that said “now is not the time for a committee.”
The agricultural unions reiterated that they would not take part in any court-ordered committee process and would not call off their protest until the new legislation was repealed.
“The members of the committee appointed by the supreme court are unreliable as they have been writing about how agri-food laws are favorable to farmers. We will continue our unrest, ”agricultural leader Balbeer Singh Rajewal told a news conference.
Farmers said they still intended to go ahead with a protest tractor rally scheduled for Delhi on the day of the Republic of India on 26 January. So far, 60 farmers have died while participating in the protests, which have involved camping in tents at freezing winter temperatures.
Some described the ruling as a setback for Modi, who can usually rely on the support of the supreme court, which is widely seen as favorable to the ruling government.
However, other observers noted that the court’s decision to suspend agricultural laws gave the government a way out of the deadlock in negotiations without appearing to have bowed to farmers’ demands.