‘Prime Minister’s decision, no comments’: Nitish Kumar on decision to scrap farm laws

“It was the Prime Minister’s decision, the Centre passed and got the laws cleared in Parliament. And the Prime Minister himself has announced that they will be repealed in the next session. so the decision is his, there cannot be any reaction to this. He has already elaborated that he tried that but people did not agree,” Kumar told reporters on Friday.

On RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav’s criticism that the JD(U)-BJP government had cracked down on those who opposed the laws, Kumar said the “opposition has every right to air its views”.

“But the decision has been taken by the Centre. He (Modi) has said it clearly that he had brought the laws in the interest of the people but some people could not understand it, necessitating a withdrawal. This is his decision,” Kumar added.

In a series of tweets, Yadav said the BJP government was compelled to repeal the laws out of fear of losing the upcoming state polls in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Uttarakhand. He also hit out at Kumar, saying, “We had taken to the streets right after the Bihar assembly poll results. And anti-farmer Nitish-BJP had slapped cases against me and our workers for opposing the laws and supporting the farmers.”