After holding meetings with a number of stakeholders engaged in the agriculture sector including Amul, ITC and Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs), the Supreme Court-appointed expert committee is likely to reach out to protesting farmer unions to take their viewpoints over the three farm legislations. Top sources said that the committee is expected to invite agitating farmers for discussion after next week. The protesting farmers under the banner of Sanyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) - has refused to talk to the committee -continue to protest at Delhi’s borders - Tikri, Singhu, and Ghazipur for over 80 days.
On the other hand, BJP MP Subramanian Swamy took to Twitter on Saturday to criticise the Centre’s treatment of the farmers’ agitation saying the farmers’ agitation may soon become an international issue as human rights groups plan to approach the International Labour Organisation of the United Nations. He further alleged that Chinese media are distorting the farmers’ agitation. “Our I&B Ministry should see that it is effectively countered since Chinese media influence in our neighbourhood is considerable now,” he tweeted.
“The agitating farmers groups have been given invitations in the past but they refused. Now, the committee will again try to reach out the agitating farmers to seek their view points, “sources said. The committee has held meeting with 12 farmers’ unions and Farm Produce Organisations’ (FPOs) and representatives of 18 State and Union Territories of agriculture departments and sought their feedback over the farm legislations in the past two days.
The three-member panel has interacted with a large number of farmer unions, farmer producer organisations (FPOs) as well as senior officials of state agriculture marketing boards and private mandis to understand their points of view on the contentious farm laws. According to the agriculture ministry, during discussion, they not only gave their frank views about the agrarian laws but also gave suggestions to improve the implementation of the laws.
The Committee has held nine rounds of deliberations with stakeholders engaged directly or indirectly in the agriculture sector so far. The three-member committee has been holding consultations with stakeholders, both online and in person.
The SKM has planned six mahapanchayats or mega gatherings of farmers over two weeks as part of its efforts to add more numbers to the protest sites. On Friday, mahapanchayats were held in Moradabad in UP and Bahadurgarh in Haryana. Three mahapanchayats will be organised in Sri Ganganagar, Hanumangarh and Seeker in Rajasthan on February 18, 19 and 23 respectively. Besides, one mahapanchayat will be organised in Sirsa in Haryana on February 22 to decide the further course of the agitation. At present, the talks between the Union Government and the farmers’ unions have come to a standstill.