In the context of conferring renowned agronomist MS Swaminathan with the posthumous Bharat Ratna award, Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh on Friday slammed the Centre for not paying heed to the protesting farmers' predicaments.
Slamming the Centre over not listening to the farmers' demands, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said while the Modi government announced Bharat Ratna for scientist MS Swaminathan, the Centre is silent on implementing the Swaminathan formula on minimum support price (MSP) for the farmers.
"Even today farmers are ready to march to Delhi but the government is not listening," Jairam Ramesh wrote on X after three Bharat Ratna awards were announced for Chaudhary Charan Singh, PV Narasimha Rao and MS Swaminathan
"Providing justice to farmers is one of the main objectives of the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra. Our demand for 'Kisan Nyay' is that farmers should be given a legal guarantee of giving minimum support price on the basis of Swaminathan formula. This will be a true tribute to former Prime Minister Chaudhary Charan Singh ji and Swaminathan ji," Jairam Ramesh said.
Receiving the news of her father's posthumous Bharat Ratna, MS Swaminathan's daughter Soumya Swaminathan, the former chief scientist of the World Health Organization, said her father would have been happy had the news come during his lifetime.
However, she also added, "He never worked for awards. A lot of recognition came to him. He was motivated more by the results of what he did on the ground, and people's love and affection," Soumya said.
MS Swaminathan died on September 28, 2023.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge issued an official statement welcoming the Bharat Ratna to Narasimha Rao, Chaudhary Charan Singh and MS Swaminathan.