SAD breaks ties with NDA over farm bill

Chandigarh: Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) the oldest ally of BJP led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) announced its decision to break its 24-year old alliance. The decision came in less than 10 days after Harsimrat Kaur Badal's resignation from the cabinet over the passage of three agri-marketing bills in the Upper House.

The Farm bill seeks to give freedom to farmers to sell their produce outside the notified Agricultural Produce & Livestock Market Committee (APMC) marker yards (mandis). According to the Centre, the bill aims to facilitate remunerative prices through competitive alternative trading channels making farmers self-reliant.

The SAD requested the Centre not to bring up the bill in the Parliament till all the reservations expressed by the farmers are duly addressed. However, when the Centre did not take a note of it the Akali Dal asked it to send the bills to a select committee, which was later rejected too.

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