Varun Gandhi posts video of UP man setting fire to crop; calls inability to help farmers 'failure of nation'

New Delhi: BJP MP Varun Gandhi on Saturday shared a video clip purportedly showing a man setting fire to a heap of paddy crop after his vain efforts to sell it, and sought a rethink of the agriculture policy. “It is a failure of all in the nation if we cannot protect those who feed us,” he said. Gandhi shared the video of the man on Twitter. “Samodh Singh, a farmer of Uttar Pradesh, had been running around mandis for the last 15 days to sell his paddy crop. When paddy did not sell, he in frustration put fire to it himself. Where has this system brought the farmers? The need of the hour is to rethink our agriculture policy,” he said. “There is no greater punishment that a farmer can inflict upon himself than setting fire to his own crops. We must all introspect as to why the system has pushed them to the edge for no fault of their own. It is a failure of all in the nation if we cannot protect those who feed us,” Gandhi added. Without making a direct attack, the BJP leader has been critical of the government’s handling of agri issues of late and has also sympathised with the farmers protesting against the three farm laws.