New Delhi: The Supreme Court has come down heavily on Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar and criticised his statements that rotting food grain cannot be distributed to the poor free of cost.
"Free of cost distribution of food grain was a part of the order. Tell your Minister that distribution of rotting food grains was a part of our order and not just an observation," the court told Additional Solicitor General Mohan Parasaran who was representing Agriculture Ministry on Tuesday.
Pawar had on August 19 claimed that the poor cannot be given the food grains for free.
"Distributing grains for free will not be possible. The Supreme Court said that the Government should consider whether they can give it at a lower rate or for free to the poor," Pawar had said while reacting to the August 12 order by the apex court to ensure free distribution of food grains to the hungry and poor instead of allowing it to rot in the Food Corporation of India godowns..
Taking a dig at Pawar the court also observed that the "ministry is very quick to declare that sugar prices are going to increase". The court also asked the Central Government to conduct a fresh survey to identify the number of families living below poverty line.
The two-judge bench of Justices Dalveer Bhandari and Deepak Verma had also asked the Government to ensure that fair price shops are kept open throughout the month in its August 12 order.
The bench passed the direction while dealing with a PIL filed by the PUCL on the rampant corruption in public distribution system (PDS) besides rotting of food grains in FCI godowns even though thousands had been going without food in the country.
Following the SC's order, there was uproar in Lok sabha over the issue. MPs belonging to the opposition parties made a submission on the court's directive. Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav and Rashtriya Janata Dal Chief Lalu Prasad Yadav took on the government, criticising it for disobeying the apex court's directive.
"The FCI godowns are overflowing and people still do not have sufficient to eat. I ask the government to distribute the food grain free of cost," Mulayam Singh said.
BJP president Nitin Gadkari too slammed the government for failing to implement the directive and demanded the Agriculture Minister's resignation.
"As the Supreme Court has passed an order, this is an indication to Agriculture Minister that he should resign," Gadkari said.
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