Congress' Jairam Ramesh criticises BJP's 'Jumlas' for farmers, vows to make MSP legal

Jairam Ramesh

Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh on Tuesday criticized the Bhartiya Janata party for failing to fulfill promises made to the farmers and asserted that the Congress party will make MSP (Minimum support price) legal if it comes to power.

Accusing the Prime Minister of making false promises or 'jumlas', Jairam Ramesh shared data on the current state of the rural economy, highlighting negative trends such as falling rural consumption expenditure, declining real wages in both agricultural and non-agricultural work, and decreased sales in tractors and two-wheelers.

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In a social media post on X, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh claimed that "For the first time in over 50 years, real rural consumption expenditure fell by 8.8% between 2011-12 and 2017-18, Additionally, the annual growth rate of real rural wages, both in agricultural (-0.6%) and non-agricultural (-1.4%) sectors, experienced negative trends between 2019-20 and 2023-24. Tractor sales in India, a proxy for rural economic health, have seen a steep decline in key states in the west and south in the first 9 months of this fiscal year, dragging overall sales down 4%. Tractor sales are estimated to decline 4-5% year-on-year, Two wheeler sales, another indicator of upward mobility among India's poor, were 22% lower in 2022-23 than in 2017-18".

Ramesh further claimed that the Indian National Congress' 'Kisan Nyay Agenda' will make MSP a legal right for farmers and determine prices based on the formula suggested by the Swaminathan Commission.

He further asserted that the current government may give accolades to Dr MS Swaminathan but has not implemented his vision, while the Congress Party promises to fulfill that vision and provide 'Nyay' to farmers."The single most important policy response to the rural distress crisis on our hands is to kick start the agriculture sector with adequate and predictable MSPs for agricultural produce. This is why @INCIndia's Kisan Nyay agenda will make MSP a legal right for farmers and determine prices based on the formula suggested by the Swaminathan Commission," Ramesh said in a post on X.

The Congress leader's claim comes at a time when thousands of farmers have been protesting around Delhi to make MSP legal.

Giving a call to march to Delhi, the farmers have been camping at multiple points in areas bordering the national capital since February 13 along with their tractors, mini-vans, and pickup trucks, demanding, among others, a law guaranteeing MSP (minimum support price) and withdrawal of police cases against farmers during earlier protests.

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