SC ON FARM LAWS
petitioners have raised any such issues,” Venugopal said.
The bench however observed, “We are doing this because you have failed to solve the problem. The Union of India has to take the responsibility. The laws have resulted into a strike and now you have to solve the strike”.
The bench also said, “Of course, usually we are against stay of any laws”.
The top court said it may stay the implementation of these laws as talks between the government and farmers are “breaking down” because the Centre wants to discuss these legislations point by point, while the farmers want them to be repealed.
When the attorney general said that laws cannot be stayed in such manner, the bench said, “We are at this position. We are sorry to say that you have not been able to solve this problem. You as the Union of India have failed to solve the problem and the agitation.”
The bench referred to the apex court’s last year order staying the implementation of 2018 Maharashtra law granting reservation to Marathas in education and jobs. It asked Venugopal to give a list of earlier judgments dealing with the issue of stay on implementation of law.
Appearing for a group of farmers, senior lawyer Dushyant Dave told the court that over 400 unions from across the country and over 100,000 people were participating in the protests. “It is a question of farmers’ existence.”
The bench said that till date it has not been told anything by the Centre on the proposal given by the top court to keep the implementation of these laws at abeyance for some time.
“We are still thinking it is equally important that we stay the implementation of law without staying the laws,” the bench said.
To this, Venugopal said, “This amounts to same thing”.
The top court said it will constitute a committee headed by a former CJI to resolve the impasse.
It suggested that stay on implementation of these laws will help the committee in finding solution.
“After the implementation of farm laws are stayed, you can carry on protest and we don’t want anyone to say that we stifled the protest,” the bench told the advocates appearing for several farmer organisations.
The apex court, which said it will pass orders on the issue concerning farm laws and farmers’ protest in part in the matter, asked the parties to suggest twothree names of former CJIs including former CJI RM Lodha who can head the apex court-appointed panel.
The court was hearing a clutch of pleas challenging the new farm laws as well as the ones raising issues related to the ongoing agitation at Delhi borders.
The eighth round of talks between the Centre and the farmer unions on January 7 headed nowhere as the Centre ruled out repealing the contentious laws, while the farmers’ leaders said they are ready to fight till death and their ‘ghar waapsi’ will happen only after ‘law waapsi’.
The apex court had earlier issued notice and sought the Centre’s response on a batch of pleas against the three contentious farm laws -- the Farmers’ (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, the Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act.
A stay on the implementation of the legislation will be a respite to farmers who have camped on a major roadway while braving the cold on the outskirts of the national capital New Delhi. A resolution of the issue from the court could pave a way out from the current impasse for the government.