Hitting out at the centre over an affidavit filed in the Supreme Court against the farmers' parade on Republic Day, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi today to the farmers who have died during the agitation since thousands of farmers from Punjab, Haryana, parts of Uttar Pradesh and Rajashthan started camping at several border points of the national capital.
The centre in an affidavit has said that "Republic Day parade disruption will be an embarrassment to the nation".
Amid deadlock over the three new agricultural laws, the farmers have warned of intensifying the protest by taking out a tractor rally on January 26. However, the SC has put the farm laws on hold.
"Martyrdom of more than 60 farmers (annadatas) didn't embarrass... but the Modi government is embarrassed by the tractor rally," Rahul Gandhi tweeted this afternoon.
By far more than 60 farmers have died, according to the protesters, during the protest that began late November. While some have committed suicide, others have died while protesting amid the winter chill.
Like several opposition leaders, Mr Gandhi has been supporting the farmers’ protests, who are demanding the withdrawal of the laws, which farmers say will leave them at the mercy of corporates.
The top court has set up a committee for talks between the government and the farmers’ unions.
All four committee members formed by the SC, however, have backed the laws in the past.
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Apart from the opposition, farmers have been equally critical, saying "these members have been justifying the laws".
Meanwhile, the Centre has remained strict to its decision of not withdrawing the acts and in its defence has said that the laws "were not hurriedly made", but are the result of two decades of deliberations.