US trade deal will hit Indian farmers hard: Akhilesh

Lucknow: Pointing fingers at India's trade deal with the United States, Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday said the pact will destroy the Indian farmers and the agri sector. He accused the BJP-led NDA govt of handing over Indian economy to ‘other countries'.Taking a jibe at claims that there was a threat to the Prime Minister inside the Parliament because of which he skipped a recent session, Akhilesh said actually it was the BJP that has left the Indian farmers ‘threatened' because of the US deal.
"India has pledged trade worth Rs 500 billion dollars with the US. India has given away the agri sector. BJP is handing over the controls of the Indian economy to other countries. Our farmers will be ruined. Cultivation will land in danger. There is no threat to the PM. The BJP has left the Indian farmers threatened," Akhilesh said. Describing the trade deal where US has imposed a tariff of 18% on Indian trade and India has kept the tariff at zero on US goods as a lopsided pact, Akhilesh said: "It seems that as per BJP's arithmetic of compromise, 18% tariff by US is equal to 0% by India." Accusing the BJP of using fancy but hollow jargon to mislead farmers, shopkeepers and traders, the former UP CM said the BJP govt has no safety and security net for Indian economic interests. "What is the secret behind surrendering Indian interests," Akhilesh asked. "It seems that the deal was structured there (in the US) and reached India," he said, adding that the role of the BJP govt was limited to signing the dotted lines. He also questioned the BJP about the fate of its ‘Make in India' campaign in the light of the US trade deal. SP wants penalty on makers of Manoj Bajpai's film Lucknow: Describing the OTT release of Manoj Bajpai starrer film as a conspiracy of the BJP, Akhilesh Yadav demanded slapping of heavy penalty on the makers to hit their financial interests in order to deter others from making such movies.There has been a furore over the release of Bajpayi starrer film with the Brahmin community taking serious offence to the title. UP govt has lodged an FIR against the makers of the film on grounds that it has hurt public sentiments and threatens to disturb the law and order. "It is BJP's trait to target a community by ‘using' some people of the same community," Akhilesh said. Without taking the name of the film saying its very mention will serve BJP's purpose which wants to humiliate Brahmin community in every possible way, Akhilesh said adding that the party first issued notice to Brahmin MLAs for holding a meeting and was now doing a formality by making statements against the OTT release and lodging of FIR.