LAHORE: Farmers say they have been hoodwinked by the Punjab government on the new sugar factories law as contrary to the promises the draft law is not being introduced in the Punjab Assembly session on Monday (today).

Pakistan Kissan Ittehad president Khalid Khokhar says he has been told that the draft bill for amending the law enacted on May 4 and abolishing `anti-sugarcane growers` measures from it may not be tabled in Monday`s session against the promise made publicly by Punjab ministers at a press conference here on Friday.

He says that he was reluctant to attend the presser held by Agriculture Minister Syed Hussain Jehanian Gardezi and SACM Dr Firdous Ashig Awan because the government had earlier backtracked from its assurance of introducing the draft bill on Friday (May 21) but he was given the excuse that the bill had to be postponed as the House was discussing Palestine issue on the day.

He was told that the bill would now be tabled in Monday`s sitting of the House. The agenda issued by the assembly secretariat for the sitting doesn`t contain introduction of any draft law during the day, though it does mention a general discussion on agriculture sector.Mr Khokhar says he has written to the prime minister, on whose intervention the Punjab government had agreed to withdraw the May 4 law, informing him that the provincial authorities are creating obstacles in the pro-farmer legislation by using delaying tactics.

He says as Speaker Chaudhry Parvez Elahi is acting as governor these days and perhaps doesn`t want the draft bill to be presented in his absence. He has also told the prime minister that by the time Mr Elahi returns from the Governor House to the assembly`s speakership, the session will be prorogued, pending the draft bill until af ter the budget session.

The Sugar Factories Control (Amendment) Act passed in the May 4 sitting of the assembly fixes Nov 30 as the last date for starting the sugarcane crushing season, allows sugar millers to pay dues to the growers by June 30, and makes non-cognizable the offence of delayed or non-payment of the dues.

The act was contrary to an ordinance issued in October last in which the government had been empowered to fix date for start of crushing season, bound millers to pay dues to growers within 15 days from purchase of sugarcane and that too through formal banking channels to check less payments or illegal deductions, besides placing other safeguards to protect growers.