Ghulam Nabi Azad meets President, urges him to send back agriculture bills
Sep 23, 2020
New Delhi [India], September 23 : Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad met President Ram Nath Kovind and urged him to return the agriculture-related bills that were passed on Sunday amid protests.
Speaking to reporters after meeting the President, Congress leader Azad told reporters, "I apprised him of the way these two bills were passed unconstitutionally and also urged him to return these bills, so that amendments can be made."
"Before passing these bills, the government should have taken all political parties into confidence. They should have discussed with farmer organisations and their leaders so that a proper consensus could have reached. But it was not so. They send these two bills neither to the select committee nor the standing committee. Otherwise, it would have been a good bill and helped farmers," he added.
Slamming the government, he said, "All the limits were crossed in the Rajya Sabha and the constitution was shamed in the world's largest democracy."
"Yesterday 18 opposition parties came together and took the decision to send a letter to President to inform him how the farm bill was passed," he added.
Pointing out that the consensus was in Opposition favour Azad further said, "The government, and not the opposition, is responsible for the chaos that happened afterwards."