Union minister claims China, Pakistan's role in farmers' protest

Aurangabad, Dec 09: Union minister Raosaheb Danve on Wednesday claimed that China and Pakistan were behind the ongoing protests by farmers, who are seeking repeal of three new farm laws.

He also alleged that Muslims were earlier misled over the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC), but as those efforts did not succeed, now farmers were being told that they will face losses due to the new laws.

Danve was speaking at the inauguration of a health centre at Kolte Takli in Badnapur taluka of Maharashtra''s Jalna district.

"The agitation that is going on is not that of farmers. China and Pakistan have a hand behind this. Muslims in this country were incited first. What was said (to them)? That NRC is coming, CAA is coming and Muslims will have to leave this country in six months. Did a single Muslim leave?

"Those efforts didn''t succeed and now farmers are being told that they will face losses. This is the conspiracy of other countries," Danve said.

The minister, however, did not elaborate on what basis he claimed that the two neighbouring countries are behind the farmers'' protests.

"The government is buying wheat at Rs 24 and rice at Rs 34 per kg and giving it to people at Rs 2 and Rs 3 per kg respectively. The government is spending Rs 1.75 lakh crore on the subsidy for this. The government is spending money for the welfare of farmers," the Minister of State for Consumer Affairs said.

"These initiatives by the central government show that it is ready to spend money for farmers, but others don''t like it," the BJP leader claimed.

Danve said Prime Minister Narendra Modi is the prime minister of farmers and none of his decisions would be against farmers.

The Shiv Sena slammed Danve for dragging China and Pakistan in the farmers'' stir, saying the BJPleaders are out of their senses.

Sena spokesperson and former Union minister Arvind Sawant told PTI that the BJP leaders are out of their senses because they lost power in Maharashtra.

"They don''t know what they are speaking," the Sena leader said.