National News

Sukhbir Singh Badal urges Ram Nath Kovind not to sign farm Bills

Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) President Sukhbir Singh Badal on Sunday urged President Ram Nath Kovind not to sign

Sentinel Digital Desk

CHANDIGARH: Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) President Sukhbir Singh Badal on Sunday urged President Ram NathKovind not to sign the farm Bills. He requested him that the Bills be returned to Parliament for reconsideration. "Please stand by the farmers, 'kisanmazdoors', 'aarhtiyas' (agents), labourers and Dalits," Badal said in a statement. "Please intervene on their behalf with the government, otherwise they will never forgive us," he said. "Don't let the 'annadata' or farmers starve or sleep on the roads."

Badal, whose party is one of the oldest allies of the ruling BJP and part of the ruling NDA, said the passage of two Bills marked a sad day for the country's millions and for democracy. "Democracy means consensus, not majority oppression," he added. The SAD also hit out at the Congress and the AamAadmi Party for what it called "back-stabbing the farmers" by not opposing the passage of the Bills in the LokSabha. (IANS)