'We are with Centre on farm laws,' says Nitish Kumar after meeting PM Modi

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Thursday met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi and said his party is with the Centre on the issue of farm laws. Speaking to media after the meeting, the JD(U) chief said that the three legislations were in the interest of farmers and not against them.

The Centre has opted for the right path by holding talks with the farmer unions agitating against the three laws, the chief minister said. "Hopefully, the issue will be resolved soon," he added.

This was Kumar's first meeting with Modi after his government assumed office in November last year. Describing it as a courtesy meeting, the chief minister said he did not make any specific demand and they talked about a range of issues.

Earlier, too, Kumar had backed the contentious laws enacted by the Centre, saying the move was not aimed at abolishing the minimum support price (MSP).

“The new farm laws will allow farmers to sell their produce wherever they want. It is in the interest of the farmers,” he had said on Monday in Patna.

Thousands of farmers have been protesting at the Delhi borders with Haryana and Uttar Pradesh for over 70 days, demanding a rollback of the Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020; Farmers' (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020; and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.

The protesting farmers have expressed the apprehension that these laws would pave the way for the dismantling of the MSP system, leaving them at the "mercy" of big corporations.

However, the government has maintained that the new laws will bring better opportunities to farmers and introduce new technologies in agriculture.