Haryana Cong demands CM Khattar's resignation over Karnal incident

The Congress on Monday demanded that Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar resign as he has ''lost the faith of the people'' and the moral authority to rule after farmers did not allow his chopper to land during an event in Karnal.

Agitating farmers had on Sunday ransacked the venue of the 'kisan mahapanchayat' programme at Kaimla village in Karnal, where Khattar was to address the gathering to highlight the ''benefits'' of the three contentious central agriculture laws.

Khattar had accused BKU (Charuni) president Gurnam Singh Charuni, the Congress and Communists for ''instigating'' people.

Addressing a joint press conference here, Congress in-charge for Haryana Vivek Bansal and former Union Minister and Haryana Congress chief Kumari Selja said it is unfortunate the BJP is putting the blame for the Sunday incidents on the Congress and choosing to ignore the mass movement of farmers against the three new agri laws.

Bansal said with lakhs of farmers taking to streets and not allowing the chief minister to hold a 'mahapanchayat' in his home district indicates that he has lost the faith of the people of the state.

''They are not seeing the mass movement of lakhs of farmers taking to the streets as part of the 'jan andolan' against the farm laws. The chief minister has lost the faith of the people and has no right to govern the state,'' he told reporters.

Bansal rejected allegations of political sponsorship to farmers' agitation and said it has taken the shape of a mass movement.

''Neither the Congress party is behind this nor anyone else. It is a mass movement and the people who have ignored this mass movement should be removed from power. We take strong objections to the chief minister blaming the Congress for yesterday's events at Karnal,'' he said.

Kumari Selja said the BJP government in Haryana is fully responsible for the situation arising in the state due to the farmers' agitation.

''The BJP has lost the faith of the public and chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar should immediately resign,'' she said.

''If this government has a little grace, it should immediately repeal the three farm laws, after the Supreme Court made critical observations with regard to the handling of the farmers stir and asked why the laws cannot be kept in abeyance,'' she also said.

The Haryana Congress also condemned the BJP government and the chief minister for ''holding the Congress responsible'' for the events in Karnal on Sunday. ''Holding the Congress responsible is condemnable and uncalled for, as the farmers' agitation is not that of the Congress but is a 'jan andolan'. The Haryana Congress is separately holding its agitation and will gherao the Raj Bhawan on January 15,'' Selja said.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)