Congress, BJP MLAs clash in Haryana Assembly over farmers' issue

Chandigarh, Mar 16: The BJP and Congress had sharp exchanges in the Haryana Assembly on Tuesday during a discussion on the state budget when the main opposition party targeted the government on the farmers' issue.

During Zero Hour in the House, BJP MLA Aseem Goel got up and showed a photo claiming that some Congress workers were among the farmers who protested outside his Ambala residence last week.

As soon as he made the claim, former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda asked him not to make wild allegations. Later, when the House took up discussion on budget estimates for 2021-22 presented in the Assembly by Chief Minister ML Khattar on Friday, Congress' newly elected MLA from Baroda segment, Indu Raj Narwal said the government keeps saying they have done so much for farmers' welfare, but it has not said a word as nearly 300 peasants have died during the ongoing agitation.

He demanded martyrs' status be given to farmers who died and Rs 50 lakh compensation along with a job to the next of kin. Intervening while Narwal was speaking, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kanwar Pal sought Hooda's comment on whether the call for boycott of political leaders of the ruling dispensation was justified.

Notably, the Haryana Assembly had on Monday passed a resolution condemning any attempt to boycott political leaders, a move which follows protests against the ruling coalition leaders in several villages over the Centre's farm laws.

"I want to ask Hooda why is he silent on this," asked Pal. Hooda replied by saying that he has been saying that maintaining law and order is the duty of the administration.

"But they are trying to thrust their own failures on others," said Hooda attacking the government, but Pal replied, "You (the opposition) cannot escape from your responsibility".