Punjab CM says his govt will move Supreme Court over new farm laws
Khatkar Kalan (Pb): Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Monday said his government would approach the Supreme Court over the issue of new farm laws. He also slammed the BJP-led central government, accusing it of snatching the rights of states.
"Will it (Centre) leave anything with them to run their states," Singh asked.
Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, along with AICC general secretary and Punjab Affairs in-charge Harish Rawat, Punjab Congress chief Sunil Jakhar along with other leaders on Monday paid tributes to Shaheed Bhagat Singh at Khatkar Kalan village.
Amarinder Singh, Rawat and others held a sit-in protest here against the new farms laws. Addressing the gathering, the CM slammed the Centre for bringing the farm laws, saying they would "destroy" the farming community.
"I have said we will take this matter forward. The president has passed these bills and now we will take this matter to the Supreme Court," Singh said.
Stating that his government would take every possible step to protect the interest of the farming community, he said, Two advocates from Delhi are coming here tomorrow and we will discuss this matter with them.
President Ram Nath Kovind on Sunday gave assent to three contentious farm bills that have triggered protests by farmers, especially in Punjab.
According to a gazette notification, the president gave assent to three bills -- the Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, 2020. Defending farmers for holding protests over the farm laws, the CM said they had the right to do so as you are taking away their livelihood .
He accused the central government of snatching the rights of states.
"Now you have taken away (right over) the farm sector. Which thing will you leave with states? Will you leave it or not? You have taken away everything (from states). How will we run our states?" he added.
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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.
