From MSP to Pulwama: Here's what Satya Pal Malik said to Rahul Gandhi

On being asked about the solution to the problem in Jammu and Kashmir, Malik said that their statehood should be returned with immediate effect

Former governor of Jammu and Kashmir Satya Pal Malik interacted with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday, discussing a range of topics from minimum support price (MSP) to Pulwama. He said that the government of India should implement MSP to protect the farmers.

Malik said that by this, the fixed price of crops will not fall.

On MSP: It will not allow fixed prices to fall

When asked by Gandhi about what should be done for Indian farmers today, Malik said, "MSP should be implemented. It is not that the government will give MSP for all crops. But by implementing MSP, the market value will not fall. MSP does not allow the fixed price to fall."

"When they (Centre) repealed the three farm laws, they promised MSP to farmers. It hasn't been done till now, why?" Malik asked in the interaction uploaded on YouTube.

Malik said that after doing this, the Centre should also control the prices of things they provide to these farmers, like fertilisers, water and electricity. "They should not be unregulated," he said.

On Adani: MSP not implemented as Adani built godowns

Malik also added that the government has not kept its promise because Adani has built huge godowns, getting the power to regulate crop prices.

On Manipur: Centre has no control

On the Manipur situation, Malik said the government has no control in Manipur. "But it is only for six months. I can give in writing. They will not come back to power," he told Gandhi.

On Pulwama: Centre to blame for lapses

Reiterating his earlier stance, Mailk blamed the Centre's lapses for the 2019 Pulwama attack.

"Why did the Pulwama incident happen? They had asked for 5 aircraft. Had they asked me, I would have given those right away. I even provided aircraft to students stuck in the snow. It is easy to get aircraft on rent in Delhi. But their application was lying for four months in the home ministry. And then it was rejected. The CRPF personnel then took the road," he said.

He added that the link roads to the highway where the incident took place were also not sanitised properly. Notably, Malik was the governor of Jammu and Kashmir at the time of the attack.

On Jammu & Kashmir: Return statehood

On being asked about the solution to the problem in Jammu and Kashmir, Malik said that their statehood should be returned immediately. "They (Kashmiris) are not as hurt by the abrogation of Article 370 as they are by removal of statehood of Jammu and Kashmir," he said.

At the end of the interview, Gandhi asked Malik if he was worried that investigative agencies would take action against him after this interview. Malik replied, "They keep attacking me. There is no problem."