Modi's far-right Hindu nationalist party already holds power in Uttar Pradesh, but its support is under pressure over a struggling economy and the government's response to the pandemic. Political analysts say these upcoming elections are a major reason behind the surprise move to withdraw the unpopular agricultural reforms, but that it’s too early to say whether it will work. But farmers feared that the government’s move to introduce market reforms would leave workers poorer. They worried that the laws signaled a move away from a system in which an overwhelming majority of farmers sell only to government-sanctioned marketplaces. This would leave them vulnerable to big corporations that would have no legal obligation to pay them guaranteed prices, they said.

Source: Libya Today November 29, 2021 17:16 UTC