Plea In SC To Permit Farmers’ Body To Stage ‘Satyagrah’

A farmers’ body, which is protesting against the three farm laws passed last year, has approached the Supreme Court seeking directions to the concerned authorities to allow it to stage ‘Satyagrah’ at the Jantar Mantar in New Delhi.

The plea has sought the apex court’s direction to the concerned authorities to provide space to at least 200 farmers or protestors of ‘Kisan Mahapanchayat’ at the Jantar Mantar for organising peaceful and non-violent ‘Satyagrah’.

The plea, filed through advocate Ajay Choudhary, has arrayed the Centre, the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi, and the Police Commissioner of Delhi as respondents.

The petition filed by ‘Kisan Mahapanchayat’, a body of farmers and agriculturists, and its president states that representation made by them to the concerned authority to permit them to hold a peaceful protest at Jantar Mantar has been rejected.

“The action of the respondents is also discriminatory and arbitrary as permission to protest has been granted to another farmer body while denying the petitioner to organise staggered ‘Satyagrah’, which is the most non-violent, peaceful, and truthful form of protest perfected and practiced by father of the nation Mahatma Gandhi,” the plea has alleged.

It claimed that the action of concerned authorities in permitting similar protests at the same site is “unfair” and violative of the Right to Equality.

The plea has also sought a direction to the authorities not to stop the petitioner body and its members from proceeding towards Jantar Mantar to carry out indefinite ‘Satyagrah’.

The farmers are protesting against the passage of three laws — The Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020 and Farmers’ (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020.

Initially, the protests started from Punjab in November last year and later spread mainly to Delhi, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh. PTI