The Rajya Sabha on Sunday descended into chaos as the House passed two contentious agriculture bills amid a prolonged outpouring of anger by the opposition parties. The two ordinances – Farmers’ and Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020 and Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020 – were passed by a voice vote.
The two bills were presented by Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar, who declared them “historic” legislations that claimed it would “bring a change in the lives of farmers”, according to NDTV. “The farmers will be able to freely trade their produce anywhere in the country,” he told the House. “I want to assure farmers that these Bills are not related to Minimum Support Price.”
The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, 2020, the third ordinance, which…