Prime Minister Narendra Modi made his biggest policy reversal since assuming power in 2014 on Friday by scrapping controversial farm laws ahead of crucial State elections following a year of persistent street protests.  

In a televised address to the nation today, Mr Modi apologised for failing to convince a section of farmers and said that the Parliament will repeal the legislation in the session that starts later this month. When lawmakers had passed the Bills in September 2020 in a bid to boost investment and productivity, Mr Modi had hailed them as “a watershed moment in the history of Indian agriculture”.

“The purpose of the new laws was to strengthen the country’s farmers, especially small farmers,” Mr Modi said on Friday. “We have failed to convince some farmers despite all our efforts.” 

The announcement comes ahead of crucial elections, including in Uttar Pradesh, India’s most-populous State, which is considered a crucial indicator of national sentiment ahead of the next national election in 2024. While polls show that Mr Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party is set to win with a reduced majority, his move on Friday suggest that he is getting nervous. 

Five Indian States will hold elections in the first half of 2022, including Punjab, a State home to many Sikh farmers who have spearheaded the protests by tens of thousands of farmers that began roughly a year ago. Mr Modi’s announcement came on a national holiday celebrating the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism, one of India’s main religions.