Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar on December 11 joined a protest by onion farmers in Nashik district, castigating the BJP-led Centre’s “anti-farmer” policies even as Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said the Centre was ready to purchase unsold onion stocks from farmers if the need arose.
The octogenarian Mr. Pawar, a figurehead of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) Opposition against CM Eknath Shinde’s tripartite government, joined protesting farmers who earlier staged a rasta roko (road blockade) on the Mumbai-Agra National Highway against the Centre’s decision to ban onion exports till March 31, 2024.
Addressing onion growers in Nashik’s Chandwad village, Mr. Pawar accused the Narendra Modi-led Central government of “ignoring the hard work of farmers” while stressing the need for cultivators to be united in demanding their rights.
