KEY STORY
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Harsimrat Kaur Badal resigned from the top post as a sign of protest against the decision of the union government to bring three bills which are set to replace ordinances related to agriculture sector.
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“SAD member and Union minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal will resign from government to protest farm bills,” said Sukhbir Singh Badal, former chief minister of Punjab and parliamentarian
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On late Thursday evening, she sent her resignation to the Prime Minister’s Office.
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In a four page resignation letter to Prime Minister Modi, she said that her decision follows “the decision of the government of India to go ahead with the controversial Bills without addressing and removing apprehensions of the farmers, and the decision of the Shiromani Akali Dal not to be part of anything that is anti-farmer.
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She felt that the Ordinances were only a “temporary arrangement” and that her concerns would be taken on board before the Bills were debated in Parliament.
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The problem between the BJP and SAD had started when the ordinances were discussed in the cabinet meeting.
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Senior leaders of SAD point out that harsimat kaur , only union minister from their party who had protested against the ordinances.
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when it was taken up for discussion in the union cabinet and it was made clear to the senior BJP leadership that SAD would not be able to support the ordinances.
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Ms Badal’s husband, SAD chief and MP, Sukhbir Singh Badal had announced that his wife and Union Minister Ms Badal would quit over his party’s opposition to these Bills and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, 2020 that was cleared by the Lok Sabha yesterday.
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Rajya Sabha MP from SAD, Naresh Gujral said that she would be quitting her ministerial post as “under the Principle of collective responsibility you cannot vote against a government Bill and still be part of the Cabinet.”
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The party said that while they may not be part of the Cabinet they would continue with the NDA led by BJP. The SAD is one of the oldest allies of the BJP.
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Tweeting from her verified account Ms. Badal said ,
I have resigned from Union Cabinet in protest against anti-farmer ordinances and legislation. Proud to stand with farmers as their daughter & sister.
— Harsimrat Kaur Badal (@HarsimratBadal_) September 17, 2020
CONCLUSION
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“Harsimrat Kaur’s decision to quit Union Cabinet is another in the long chain of theatrics being enacted by @Akali_Dal_ which has still not quit ruling coalition. It’s motivated not by any concern for farmers but to save their own dwindling political fortunes. Too little too late.,”Singh wrote on Twitter on Thursday evening.
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Congress staged a serious of protests on the sidelines of the Parliament sittings. The issue became controversial with some party MPs from Punjab burnt copies of the farm bills in the Parliament premises.
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Congress is of the opinion that the bills if passed will be a “three pronged” attack on agriculture system.
