Congress general secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala
Credit: PTI Photo
Chandigarh: Farmers who died during the protest against the three farm laws would be given martyr status if the Congress wins the Haryana assembly elections, party general secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala said on Friday.
Hitting out at the BJP-led NDA government, Surjewala said, "They were forced to withdraw the black farm laws. They had assured a legal guarantee for minimum support prices (MSP). They have failed to do it." "As many as 750 farmers died during the agitation (at the Delhi border). A Congress government will be formed with people's blessings after one month (in Haryana). Within 30 days of assuming charge, all 750 (farmers) will be given martyr status and their next of kin a job," Surjewala, a former Haryana minister, said at a gathering in Kaithal district.
Farmers -- mostly from Haryana, Punjab and Rajasthan -- had protested against the now-repealed three farm laws along Delhi's borders in 2020-2021.
On the issue of legal guarantee for MSP, Surjewala said, "Narendra Modi, Manohar Lal Khattar and Nayab Singh Saini did not fulfil that promise. Today, I want to tell you that the day Rahul Gandhi becomes prime minister, the first law in Parliament will be a legal guarantee for MSP." Surjewala also said if the Congress formed the government in Haryana, it would effectively tackle unemployment, which he called a big problem.
"We will ensure jobs are given in a transparent manner. Two lakh posts are lying vacant in Haryana, of which nearly a lakh posts are for Scheduled Castes and Backward Classes, but the BJP government in the state failed to fill those. We will fill these vacancies," he said.
Unemployment is a big problem and has affected every household. In addition to providing government jobs, employment avenues will also be created in the private sector, the Congress leader added.