Death warrant for ryots

Barnala/New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the timing of the Indo-US interim trade deal.

Addressing the Mazdoor Kisan Maha Rally in Barnala, Punjab, Rahul said the deal had been stalled for four months due to disagreements over opening the agriculture sector. “So, the question arises, the work which PM did not do for four months, why did he do it within 15 minutes?” Rahul Gandhi asked.

“What was the pressure that the prime minister of India signed a death warrant for our country there. He signed a death warrant for our farmers. He gave away our data. He signed a death warrant for our small and medium industries,” the Congress leader alleged.

Rahul further said the Prime Minister gave a guarantee to US president Donald Trump that India would buy US products worth Rs 9 lakh crore every year.

He said opening the agricultural sector would allow American goods to enter the Indian market and harm farmers in Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Odisha.

“Narendra Modi has opened the door of the agricultural sector. American goods will flow in, and our farmers will be ruined,” he said. “No Prime Minister of India, whether from the Congress Party, the BJP, or any other party, can open the agricultural sector. No Prime Minister can.”

Rahul further claimed he was not allowed to speak in the Lok Sabha after the President’s address because he wanted to refer to an unpublished book by former Army Chief Gen Manoj Naravane (retd). He alleged that the memoir described a lack of response from the political leadership during Chinese troop movements near the border.