Farmers’ protest: Should have held talks with stakeholders before enacting farm laws, says BJP MP Brijendra Singh

Police try to stop farmers during a protest demanding better price for their produce on the outskirts of New Delhi. (Image: Reuters)

BJP MP Brijendra Singh has said the farm laws are "reformist and revolutionary" but should have been passed after an “extensive dialogue with the farming community”, as farmer protests play out in the national capital and its borders.

The Centre would not have to deal with the agitation had there been a comprehensive dialogue with stakeholders, said Singh, who represent Haryana’s Hisar in the Lok Sabha.

"I do feel there is some lack of dialogue prior to passing of these bills in Parliament. Had all the stakeholders been taken on board prior to the passage of the bills, we would have better situation now," Singh was quoted as saying by news agency ANI on November 29.

The remarks go against the line of the party which says the agitation has been politicised. Farmers from the states of Haryana, Punjab and parts of Uttar Pradesh want the three farm laws that deregulate sale of crops scrapped.

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Singh, 48, a former IAS officer who took voluntary retirement from the service, is the son of former Union Steel Minister Birender Singh. He was elected to Lok Sabha in 2019 on a BJP ticket.

"When issues of public are involved, politics is bound to come in. Politics isn't a dirty word. Politics is bound to be there on such an issue of this magnitude," he said.

Singh’s great-grandfather Sir Chhotu Ram was the architect of agriculture reforms that sought to liberate the peasants from the clutches of the moneylenders in British India’s Punjab province.

The MP said the farmers were protesting to have a dialogue with the government. “Earlier, government has given them a date. They say why not have it now. That now has also been answered. I feel they will come around after having discussions with various unions who are agitating," he said.

The protesting farmers have rejected the Centre’s offer for early talks and have threatened to block all five entry points to the national capital.​