Kamala Harris' niece tweets in support of farmers protest in India

(Karachi) The niece of US Vice President Kamala Harris has extended her support for the ongoing farmers protests, saying that we all should be outraged by India’s internet shutdowns and paramilitary violence against farmer protesters.

In a tweet on Wednesday, Meena Harris, who is a lawyer by profession, expressed great concern over the ongoing protests by farmers in India against the contentious farm laws.

She stated, "It’s no coincidence that the world’s oldest democracy was attacked not even a month ago, and as we speak, the most populous democracy is under assault."

She added, "This is related. We ALL should be outraged by India’s internet shutdowns and paramilitary violence against farmer protesters."

Drawing parallels between the the storming of the US Capitol and the crackdown on the protesting farmers, Harris said "militant nationalism is just as potent a force in US politics as it is in India or any place else."

Earlier, several other celebrities and politicians also raised their voices against the Modi-led BJP government and in favour of India's farming community condemning the crackdown on farmers. American actress Amanda Cerni, Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg, YouTuber Lilly Singh, US House Representative Jim Costa, UK MP Claudia Web and others criticised Indian government's move to bring in new farm laws.

The backdrop

Last year, massive protests broke out across India after the Indian government introduced the controversial farm laws. The farmers protested the three laws which they say are meant to overhaul procurement procedures and grant them more options to sell their produce.

On November 30, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi resisted calls for the repeal of farm reforms that have ignited the biggest protests by farmers in years around New Delhi.

Thousands of people from the big farming state of Punjab were camped out on the outskirts of Delhi for a fifth day demanding that they be allowed to stage protests in the city centre against the new laws that open up India’s tightly regulated farm produce market.

Farmers who could earlier sell grains and other products only at neighbouring government-regulated wholesale markets can now sell them across the country, including to big food processing companies and retailers such as WallMart.

But farm groups and opposition parties say the government will eventually abolish the wholesale markets, where growers were assured of a minimum support price for staples like wheat and rice, leaving small farmers at the mercy of corporate agri-businesses.