Lakhimpur Kheri violence 'absolutely condemnable', says Nirmala Sitharaman

In the first reaction from the top brass of the Narendra Modi government on Lakhimpur Kheri violence, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said that the killing of four farmers as "absolutely condemnable" but sought to find fault with people raising such incidents happening in the country only "when it suits them".

She was responding to a question on the Lakhimpur incident and subsequent arrest of a Minister's son during a conversation at Harvard Kennedy School in the United States where she is on an official visit.

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Asked why the Prime Minister and senior ministers have not commented on the incident and why there is a "defensive reaction" when questioned about such things, she said, "no, absolutely not... It's nice of you to have picked up that one incident which is absolutely condemnable, every one of us say that. Equally there are instances happening elsewhere, is my concern."

"India has issues of such nature happening in very many different parts of the country equally. I would like you, and many others, including Dr Amartya Sen, who all know India, to raise it at every time when it happens, not just raise it when it suits us because it's a state where BJP is in power, one of my cabinet colleague's son is probably in trouble, and also assume that it's actually them who did it and not anybody else. Due course of justice will also have a complete inquiry process to establish it," she said.

Her comments came as Prime Minister Narendra Modi also referred to "selective outrage" over issues of human rights, saying some people define human rights from their own perspective and see violation of human rights in some incidents but do not find violation of human rights in similar cases elsewhere.

Read more: Priyanka Gandhi attends final prayers of slain farmers in Lakhimpur violence

Sitharaman said she was not being defensive about her party or the Prime Minister but it was being defensive about India. "I will talk for India, I will talk for justice for the poor. I will not be mocked at. And if it is mocking, I will be defensive to stand up and say 'sorry, let's talk on facts'. That's my answer for you," she said during the event held on Tuesday.

Asked about farmers' protests, she said the laws were passed by the Parliament after being discussed by various parliamentary committees over a decade.

These laws were discussed at state and central levels after the BJP came into power in 2014 and it has been in the making for a decade now and every stakeholder has been consulted.

"When the farm laws were brought in the Lok Sabha, there was an elaborate discussion and the agriculture minister gave his reply as well. It was only when it came to the Rajya Sabha, there was a lot of noise and disturbance," she said.

On the continuing protests against the laws, she said the protesters belong to "Punjab, Haryana and some parts of western Uttar Pradesh" and the Centre has been saying that it is willing to discuss the issues with them.

"We are willing to talk about it, tell us about one particular aspect in any one of the three laws. Till date, we have not had even one particular aspect which is being questioned. And therefore, the protesters are not sure on what score they are protesting, what is it that they are objecting to," she said.

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