Satya Prakash
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, January 12

A Bench headed by CJI SA Bobde on Monday took up petitions challenging the validity of the three farm laws and those seeking removal of agitating farmers from Delhi roads.

Attorney General KK Venugopal tells the top court that farmers’ organisations had rejected various offers made by the government.

The CJI said, “We are extremely disappointed the way government is handling the issue. Last four times you said negotiations are on. What negotiations are you talking about?”

“If you have some sense of responsibility, and if you say you will withhold the implementation of laws, we will form committee to decide. We don’t see why there should be an insistence that the laws must be implemented at any cost.”

“Our intention is clear. We want an amicable solution to the problem. That is why we asked you last time, why don’t you keep the laws on hold? But you keep asking for time. We are not on the merits of the law. We are not on repeal. This is a very delicate situation.”

The CJI said it will not help the government to say that the previous government started it. “We don’t know if you are part of the problem or solution,” said the CJI.

The CJI pointed out that “we don’t have any single petition before us saying that the laws are good.” He said if the laws are beneficial, let the vast majority of country tell the committee (to be set up by SC).

Whether you have faith or not, we are the Supreme Court of India.

The CJI proposed to form a committee and if government did not do so they will stay the implementation of the farm Acts.

“Whether you have faith or not, we are the Supreme Court of India. We will do our job,” asserted the CJI, after a lawyer said, “We have full faith in you.”

The CJI said: “We will stay implementation of the laws.”

“We want to make it clear we are not stifling the protest.  You can carry on with the protest.  But the question is whether the protest should be held at the same site.”

Attorney General KK Venugopal opposed the stay. He cited judgments to contend that there was no violation of fundamental rights or lack of legislative competence. Venugopal asserted that farmers of other states had not joined the protests.

Senior advocate Harish Salve said the government had agreed on minimum support price.

Venugopal cited bursting of crackers and ensuing Republic day celebrations to caution about potential violence from farmers.

The CJI said it was for the police to deal with the situation not the court. Courts cannot restrain peaceful protest. They cited Mahatma Gandhi’s satyagraga.

The CJI said: “We want to ensure no violence or blood bath in the streets. If somebody breaks the law you take action. The court would not break any violence.”

As Venugopal vehemently opposed any stay, CJI Bobde said, “We are still thinking. It’s equally effective if we stay the implementation of the law without staying the law.”

However, Venugopal said, “It’s the same thing.”

“We can always a stay a legitimate executive action under a law,” insisted the CJI.

“Who shall be held responsible for any bloodshed?” asked the CJI, asserting that the court had a bounden duty to protect citizens lives and properties guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution.

Salve, representing a Delhi-resident, said the court should have an assurance from farmers’ unions that they would go to the committee if the farm law was stayed.

Senior advocate Dushyant Dave, representing farmers’ unions, said he needed to take instructions as there were 400 farmers’ bodies involved in the agitation.

Salve cautioned the court against the possibility of protests getting scaled up to demand repeal of the laws following stay on their implementation.

Advocate Archana Pathak Dave, representing a South Indian farmers’ body, demanded implementation of the three farm laws.

Senior Advocate Colin Gonsalves appeared for some farmers’ unions. He said: “The unions had appointed a committee of four lawyers, which had Dushyant Dave, Prashant Bhushan, HS Phoolka and me. All of us will go back and consult unions and take a stand on this.”

“If not cold, farmers are in danger of covid. If we stay the law, there is no need for farmers to be at the site, said the CJI, citing the ensuing Republic Day.

He asked senior advocate HS Phoolka and other lawyers to persuade them to go back. “At some time, we might say in the order that old people and women need not be there in the protests.”

The top court said it’s contemplating to request former CJI RM Lodha to head the committee proposed by it.

The CJI said the court will pass appropriate orders on Tuesday and hinted at the staying of implementation of the three farm laws.

Attorney General KK Venugopal wondered, “When they (farmers) go before the committee, will it be their only demand that the laws must be repealed? If they are not prepared to tell their exact grievances, the committee will not be useful.”

Solicitor General said, “Kindly remove the impression that we didn’t do enough. We gave our best. But the farmers groups have been non-cooperative during talks.”

The high motivation levels of the Army personnel despite harsh and challenging service conditions came shining through at a recent seminar by a leading think tank. However, the deliberations and recommendations regarding the prevailing stress levels need serious consideration. The observation that ‘more than half of the Army seems to be under severe stress… due to operational and non-operational reasons’ calls for a carefully-thought-out policy intervention and remedial measures. A shift in strategy is all the more necessary because the various stress management steps implemented during the past 15 years have apparently not been able to achieve the desired results.

The cause-and-effect list includes the prolonged exposure to counter-terrorism environment, non-combat-related reasons, inadequacies in the quality of leadership, overburdened commitments, inadequate resources and frequent dislocation. A more supportive and responsive organisational and administrative climate has been advocated. Stress prevention and management, it has been pointed out, have to be treated as a leadership role. An insightful suggestion is making government agencies and the society at large more sensitive to the peculiar service conditions and the ethos of the soldiers.

The issues that need to be addressed on priority, according to experts, are those related to the quality of command and man-management that affect the morale, motivation, honour and dignity of Army personnel. Aspirational concerns, better support facilities for self and family, delay or denial of leave, unreasonable restrictions, lack of recreational facilities, conflict with seniors as well as subordinates, health problems, delay in crediting of financial claims and poor quality of rations — the catalogue may be long, but solutions have to be found and changes implemented. As aptly articulated, prolonged exposure to excessive stress has serious adverse effects on the health and efficiency of soldiers and combat units. Be it the Army or other armed forces, of paramount importance is improving and maximising institutional arrangements to deal with personnel under stress; from counselling to motivating to showing empathy.

The Supreme Court has rightly taken the Centre to task for its mishandling of the farmers’ agitation, which began in the last week of November and has shown no sign of abatement so far despite the severe cold and the loss of 60-odd lives. ‘Extremely disappointed’ — these words sum up the court’s reaction to the way the negotiations between the government and the farmer leaders over the contentious farm laws have progressed. The government’s dilly-dallying, aimed at wearing out the protesters, has cut no ice with the CJI-led Bench, which is keen on constituting a committee to break the deadlock.

In a scathing observation made in August last year, the apex court, while hearing a plea regarding the Tablighi Jamaat congregation, had said that governments did not act till the courts directed them to do so. A similar script is being played out now, with the Centre stubbornly sticking to its guns over the agriculture-related Acts and promising, at best, some amendments. What’s worse, the government has tried to pass off the stir as being Punjab-centric, whereas farmers from Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and other states have also been vocal in opposing the laws. The vandalism witnessed on Sunday at Kaimla village in Karnal district, where Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar was scheduled to hold a kisan mahapanchayat but had to cancel it, unfortunately shows that the discontent is manifesting itself in violent ways and how quickly things can spin out of control.

Invoking Gandhi’s satyagraha, the court has reaffirmed the citizens’ right to stage a peaceful protest, even as it has expressed concern over the prolonged presence of agitators, especially the vulnerable elderly, at Delhi’s borders. It is hoped that the court’s welcome intervention will rouse the government to be part of the solution rather than of the problem. The Centre can no longer hide behind the fig leaf of the ‘potential benefits’ of the new laws. Its strategy of forcing the states to toe the line has backfired. The government has to learn to ‘let go’, starting with deferment of the implementation of the Acts.

kesh Tandon

Tribune News Service

Sonepat, January 11

Parwinder Singh, one of the few Sikh sculptures who has been propagating the Sikh history through a museum created by him at Balongi in Mohali district, today established a mini museum near the central stage at the Singhu border.

“Our history is full of courage and martyrdom. I have come here with some statues to make youths aware about the Sikh heritage,” says Parwinder Singh.

Parwinder Singh, who is a a scooter mechanic by profession, said the statues of Bhai Mati Das, Baba Deep Singh, Bhai Sati Das and four Sahibzadas had been established in the mini museum, which was visited by hundreds of farmers today.

He said there were 70 statues at his museum at Balongi, but it was not possible to bring all of them here. “My aim is to establish a museum on the lines of Madame Tussauds Wax Museum in London. I have been trying to do my best from my limited source of income,” he added.

Tribune News Service

Jhajjar, January 11

Farmers’ organisations have announced their agitation against the new three farm laws would be intensified if the Centre failed to repeal the legislations. The decision was taken during a meeting at the Tikri border on Monday.

Prahlad Singh Bharukhera, state president, Haryana Kisan Manch, told the media: “The non-committal attitude of the Centre towards our demands has forced us to intensify the agitation. A tractor rally will be held in Bhiwani on January 12. The next day, copies of the laws will be burnt. On January 15, a cavalcade of tractors will leave for Delhi borders from Sirsa to participate in the proposed Delhi march on the Republic Day.”

Farmers’ outfits accused Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar of dividing protesters and defaming their agitation. They demanded withdrawal of cases registered against protesting farmers of Karnal on Sunday.

On farmers vandalising the venue of Khattar’s event in Karnal district on Sunday, Bharukhera said the outfits had in advance asked the government and the district authorities not to organise the event, but the authorities went ahead and organised the function.

He alleged the state government was trying to make the agitation violent by hatching a conspiracy.

ibune News Service

Karnal, January 11

Farmers have threatened to gherao the police station if their brethren are arrested in connection with the vandalism of the venue, where Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar was to address a “kisan mahapanchayat” in the district’s Kaimla village on Sunday.

Khattar had to cancel his programme as the situation turned tense. Subsequently, around 900 farmers, including 71 by name, were booked. Among them was BKU (Charuni) president Gurnam Singh Charuni.

“We are ready to court arrest, but want to make it clear that if the police try to arrest any farmer, we will gherao the police station (where the case has been registered),” said Jagdeep Singh Aulakh, member of the state core committee, BKU (Charuni) on Monday while addressing farmers at the Bastara toll plaza, where they have been staging dharna.

“Not a single farmer attacked a government or police official. On the contrary, it was BJP workers who attacked farmers,” he claimed.

The BKU leader further said, “We had appealed to the BJP several times that it should cancel the programme, but it ignored our calls, forcing us to protest… The police had detained three farmers, who were released later.”

SP Ganga Ram Punia said, “A case against farmers has been registered under Sections 147, 149, 323, 332, 353, 109 and 120-B of the IPC, and Section 3 of the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act.”