Modi, Yediyurappa govts have launched "diabolical attack" on lives of farmers: Surjewala
Bengaluru: Calling both the central and state government as 'anti-farmer', AICC General Secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala on Sunday alleged that they have launched a "diabolical attack" on the lives and livelihoods of farmers.
Terming amendments to APMC and land reforms acts passed by the Karnataka assembly on Saturday as "black laws", he accused the government of selling the interests of farmers to a handful of corporates and builder lobbies.
"Both the Modi (Prime Minister Narendra Modi) and Yediyurappa (Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa) governments are anti-farmer governments.
They have launched a diabolical attack on the lives and livelihoods of farmers in Karnataka, as also the rest of the country," he said.
Surjewala was referring to the amended APMC and land reforms Act in Karnataka and the three contentious farms bills passed by Parliament, against which farmers have launched a stir in Punjab, while those in Haryana would do so from September 28 to 31.
Speaking to reporters here, he said under the leadership of Congress President Sonia Gandhi and former President Rahul Gandhi, and D K Shivakumar in Karnataka, the party is committed to decisively defeat the 'anti-farmer' forces.
"They are selling the interests of farmers to a handful of corporates and builder lobbies, as is apparent from the black laws passed in the assembly.
We will support the farmers endeavour in every manner and will stand in solidarity with farmers in Karnataka and India," he added.
Despite stiff resistance from the opposition, especially Congress, the B S Yediyurappa government succeeded in getting the Karnataka Agricultural Produce Marketing (Regulation and Development) (Amendment) Bill and the Karnataka Land Reforms (Second Amendment) Bill passed in the Assembly on Saturday.
Farmers organisations have also opposed both legislations, and have called a state wide bandh on Monday against it.
While the amendments to land reform act liberalises farmland ownership, the APMC amendment bill curtails the powers of local Agricultural Produce Marketing Committees (APMC) and private individuals can start agricultural trading, if they hold a Permanent Account Number (PAN).
Earlier, State congress president D K Shivakumar said they support the farmers' agitation.
"Since Congress is a national party, our AICC General Secretary (Surjewala) will discuss with us and announce what is to be done in the state," he said.
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MediaOne TV Facebook page restored after block linked to ‘government request’
Kochi: The official Facebook page of Malayalam news channel MediaOne TV has been restored after being blocked without prior notice, the broadcaster said on Wednesday.
The channel was quoted by Maktoob as saying that the restriction was lifted automatically, with Meta Platforms informing it that the action had been taken following a “government request” which has now expired or been reversed.
The development came shortly after the channel approached the Kerala High Court challenging the blocking of its page, terming it arbitrary and in violation of legal provisions and judicial precedents. The High Court had issued notice to Meta via email hours before the restriction was withdrawn.
In its petition, the channel said access to its Facebook page had been restricted for users in India without citing any specific content or alleged violation. It contended that while individual posts may be taken down under applicable a rule, blocking an entire page goes beyond the scope of such measures.
The incident followed an earlier action taken against the channel in 2022, when the Ministry of Information and transmitting prohibited it from transmitting. It cited national security concerns regarding the Ministry of Home Affairs' refusal of security clearance.
The Supreme Court of India in April 2023 set aside the ban, observing that national security claims cannot be made without substantive basis and that criticism of government policies does not render a media outlet anti-national.
