Akali Dal to hold protest march to Parliament on Sept 17 demanding repeal of 3 farm laws

Shiromani Akali Dal General Secretary Bikram Singh Majithia addresses a press conference in Amritsar on Tuesday. Pic/ PTI

The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) has decided to hold a protest march to the Parliament on Friday as the party will observe September 17 as 'Black Day' on completion of one year of enactment of the three contentious farms laws.

SAD General Secretary Prem Singh Chandumajra said, "Our party will hold a protest march from Delhi's Gurdwara Rakabganj to the Parliament, demanding repeal of the three laws."

"The march will be peaceful. We will give a memorandum to Government to repeal the 3 farm Laws. Even if we don't get permission to protest, we will protest peacefully and give our memorandum," he said.

The top leadership of SAD will also participate in this program on Friday, September 17. Incidentally, it is also Prime Minister Narendra Modi's birthday.

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In reply to Navjot Singh Sidhu's statement, Chandumajra said, "Navjot Singh Sidhu should not talk old things, if we talk about old things, Chief Minister and the Government of Punjab came to know about these farm bills first, when the Centre was taking the views of state governments, on which they did not raise any objection. Amrinder Singh's government supported the bill, the state government just asked the Centre to rethink the state revenue issue."

He also said, "Shiromani Akali Dal was the only party who voted against the laws in parliament when congress and other parties walked out. This is on record."

Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu on Wednesday attacked the Badals, accusing them of laying the foundation of the Centre's farm laws over which farmers are protesting for the past several months.

The Congress leader alleged that one of the Centre's laws is a "photostat copy" of the Punjab Contract Farming Act, 2013 enacted during the previous SAD-BJP government led by Parkash Singh Badal.

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