Don't ignore farmers, Rahul tells PM

A rejuvenated Rahul Gandhi on Monday accused the NDA government of being "pro-industrialist" and advised Prime Minister Narendra Modi not to ignore farmers who comprise more than 60 percent of the country's population.

"He (Modi) will gain politically if he changes his side. You are hurting the farmers and in the coming times they will hurt you," said Gandhi, who made his appearance in parliament for the first time in the budget session after a 56-day sabbatical. The Congress vice president, who was intervening in a debate on the agrarian crisis, accused the NDA government of neglecting farmers and farm labourers.

"The price of land is increasing fast and your corporate friends want this land and you are controlling the farmers, and when he (farmer) becomes weak then you will hit him with your ordinance axe. That is why you are ready to make 60 percent people angry," he said. He said while the Modi government talked about strengthening the country, it was ignoring the farmers. "How can you talk about strengthening the country...the foundation of the country is the farmer."

As the ruling benches tried to interrupt his speech many times, the Gandhi family scion took them on stoically. "I am sorry to say that on the matter of Minimum Support Price (MSP) and the agricultural credit, the 'acche din' government has failed the country," he said. "Your prime minister spoke to farmers and said he will look after them. I would like to give a suggestion to him. Why doesn't the prime minister go and see for himself wheat is lying in the market and the government is not buying it...farmers are not being given fertilizers."

Gandhi, who returned from a long holiday abroad, addressed a farmers' rally in the capital on Sunday where he raised similar issues. Gandhi also accused the Modi government of not presenting right picture before the country on important issues. Talking about the government's assessment of recent damage to wheat and other crops in the country, the Congress vice president said the prime minister, the agriculture ministry and the Bharatiya Janata Party gave different figures of the affected crops.  The government earlier in the day tabled the land acquisition ordinance in the lok Sabha amid protests from the opposition. The Congress and Trinamool Congress staged a walkout over the issue.