The Supreme Court of India announced on Thursday its intention to set up a multi-member committee aimed at permanently resolving the grievances of farmers. The decision, part of a broader effort to address ongoing agricultural disputes, was revealed during a hearing presided over by Justices Surya Kant, Dipankar Datta, and Ujjal Bhuyan. The court has scheduled the next hearing for September 2, during which it expects the Punjab and Haryana governments to submit preliminary issues that the committee will address.
In recent developments, the Punjab government reported compliance with the Supreme Court’s August 12 directive, which facilitated a meeting with protesting farmers. This meeting led to an agreement to partially reopen the blocked highways, demonstrating progress in negotiations. The justices urged both state governments to continue dialogues with the farmers, encouraging the removal of tractors and trollies that have congested key highways since protests intensified.
The ongoing farmer protests, which began on February 13 at the Shambhu border, have posed significant challenges to regional mobility and law enforcement. The Supreme Court had previously directed the Punjab government to negotiate the clearance of highways, emphasizing that these routes should not serve as makeshift parking spaces.
The context of the protests relates to the farmers’ demand for a legal guarantee of minimum support prices (MSP) for their crops, among other agricultural reforms. These issues escalated following the announcement by the ‘Samyukta Kisan Morcha’ (Non-Political) and ‘Kisan Mazdoor Morcha’ of a march to Delhi in February, prompting the Haryana government to erect barricades along the Ambala-New Delhi national highway.
