Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Monday urged farmers to spare Punjab from their protests against the three central farm laws and advised them to shift their sit-in venues to Delhi’s borders or in Haryana. 

Singh pleaded with the farmers to shift their protest sites outside Punjab arguing that their ongoing agitation at 113 places in the state was hampering its economic development. He urged farmers to mount pressure at the Centre from the Delhi borders or Haryana instead.

“I want to tell farmer brothers that it is your Punjab, your villages, your people. We should not disturb our Punjab. You do whatever you want to do at Delhi (borders), put pressure on them (the Centre) and make them agree,” said Singh.

“Do you know that farmers are sitting at 113 places in Punjab? What will be the gain out of it? Punjab will suffer economically. Let them do what they (farmers) are doing at Delhi (borders) and in Haryana. You (farmers) do it there,” said Singh while referring to farmers’ agitation.

“There is no use sitting at 113 places in Punjab and weakening its financial position,” he said, hoping that farmers would accede to his request.

The Punjab chief minister’s appeal to farmers invited a quick reaction from Haryana Home Minister Anil Vij who dubbed his statement as “irresponsible”.

“It is a very irresponsible statement of Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh to tell farmers that do whatever you want in Haryana or at Delhi borders but do not do it in Punjab,” Vij said in a tweet. “This proves that Amarinder Singh has done the work of instigating farmers,” Vij added.

While addressing the gathering, Punjab CM Singh also urged the Centre to repeal the three agriculture laws. Asking the Central government to shed its “stubbornness” over the issue of “black laws”, Singh said the Constitution has been amended 127 times since 1950 and asked why it could not be done 128th times.

“So why not one more time to repeal the farm laws for providing succour to the farmers who have been sitting at Singhu and Tikri borders,” he said.

(With PTI inputs)