A day after facing backlash from farmer unions and political parties, including her own, BJP MP Kangana Ranaut on Wednesday retracted her statement on bringing back the three farm laws that were repealed by the Centre in 2021 after large-scale protests. “I need to keep in mind that I am no longer just a film star but also a BJP worker. My party’s views should be my views and my opinions should not contradict the party’s stance. I regret if my opinion hurts anyone, and I take back my words,” Ranaut said. “In recent days, the media asked me questions about farmers and farm laws. I responded by saying that farmers should urge Prime Minister Narendra Modi to bring back the three farm laws. When these laws were proposed, many of us supported them. However, with immense sensitivity and empathy, our honourable PM withdrew them. It is our duty as party workers to uphold the dignity of the Prime Minister’s words,” the actor-MP added. On Monday, while interacting with the media at Nachan, which is part of her Mandi constituency, Ranaut had said that farmers and the government should bring back the three farm laws. While the Himachal Pradesh BJP had said that Ranaut’s remarks were her “personal view”, Congress and AAP leaders had condemned her statements saying the BJP was “using her to further its anti-farmer agenda”. Meanwhile, farmer union leaders had reacted to the comments, saying it was Ranaut’s “tactic” to stay in the spotlight. The three contentious farm bills – the Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020 – were passed by Parliament in September 2020. However, these laws were repealed by the Centre in November 2021 following continuous protests by farmers.
