'No plans to enter corporate farming': Reliance moving court over vandalisation of Jio towers

The RIL, which is accused of hobnobbing with the government by the country's Opposition, made the statement as it has moved Punjab and Haryana High Court seeking government's intervention in the backdrop of the vandalisation of towers of its telecom platform Jio allegedly by the angry farmers.

"Reliance Retail, Reliance Jio Infocomm, or any other affiliate of our parent company, ie, Reliance Industries have not done any 'corporate' or 'contract' farming in the past, and have absolutely no plans to enter this business," the company issued a statement.

As per media reports, oer 1,500 of 9,000 Jio towers were vandalised only in Punjab in December, 2020.

Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh had asked police to take stern action against the accused but no case has been filed yet.

Seeking the government's act to stop the vandalisation of towers by "miscreants", the company said, "These acts of violence have endangered the lives of thousands of its employees and caused damage and disruption to the vital communications infrastructure, sales and service outlets run by its subsidiaries in the two states."

"The miscreants indulging in vandalism have been instigated and aided by vested interests and our business rivals," the statement added.

The seventh round of talks between the Centre and farmers protesting against the central government's agricultural reforms will be held on Monday, as the deadlock over the three farm laws are yet to be resolved.

Thousands of farmers primarily from Punjab and Haryana, who are camped at the border of Delhi since Nov 26 last year, have already warned that they would hold a tractor rally on Republic Day on Jan 26 if their demands of the repeal of the laws are not met.

While the government is firm on implementing the contentious farm laws, it has agreed in the last round of talks to withdraw the Electricity Amendment Bill and the penal provisions for stubble burning in the Air Quality Commission Ordinance, which were among the other demands of the protesting farmers. 

One of the Centre's new farm laws will now allow farmers to sell their produce to institutional buyers beyond the regulated wholesale market.

Though the middlemen in the wholesale markets are often accused of usurping the farmers in the earlier agricultural system, the protesters, backed by several opposition parties, fear they will have little bargaining power while selling their produce to institutional buyers, running the risk of getting exploited with the gradual destablising of the mundies.