Soon after Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged agitating farmers to end their stir and resume the dialogue, farmers’ unions on Monday asked the Government to fix a date for the next round of talks.
Farmer leader Shiv Kumar Kakka, who is a senior member of the Samkyukta Kisan Morcha which is spearheading the ongoing stir, said they are ready for the next round of talks and the Government should tell them the date and time of the meeting.
“We have never refused to hold talks with the government. Whenever it has called us for dialogue, we held discussions with Union ministers. We are ready for talks with them (government),” Kakka told PTI.
To Modi’s address in the Rajya Sabha during which he assured minimum support price (MSP), Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader Rakesh Tikait said there is no law on MSP and the Government should repeal these farms laws.
The farmers leaders sitting across the borders of the city also objected to Modi’s remarks that a new “breed” of agitators called “andolan jivi” has emerged in the country, and said agitation has an important role in a democracy.
Talking to media person on Monday, Tikait said business over hunger will not be allowed in the country and the laws should be repealed.
“The way rates of a flight ticket fluctuate three to four times a day, the price of crops will not be decided the same way. The farmers are a community which has emerged and people are also supporting the farmers. The farmers protesting against the new laws have already highlighted is that there is no law on MSP, because of which traders loot them by buying crops at lower prices,” said Tikait.
“This movement was first portrayed as Punjab’s issue, then Sikhs’ then Jats, so on and so forth. The farmers of the country are united. There is no small farmer or big farmer. The movement belongs to all farmers,” said Tikait.
Sukhdev Singh, Punjab general secretary of BKU Ekta Ugrahan, sought to know why the government is not ensuring a legal guarantee on MSP for crops and alleged that it is trying to divert the issue. Farmer leader Baldev Singh also said that government should repeal these farm laws and provide a legal guarantee on MSP for farmers’ crops.
To press their demands, protesting unions held a nationwide “chakka jam” last week, during which national and state highways were blocked in Punjab, Haryana and other parts of the country.
Eleven rounds of talks have been held over the contentious farm laws but the impasse continues as the farmer unions remain firm on their demands -- the repeal of the three laws and legal guarantee for MSP.
In the last round of talks, the Government had offered to suspend the laws for 12-18 months, but the farmer unions rejected it.
Thousands of agitating farmers, mostly from Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh, have been camping at three Delhi border points --- Singhu, Tikri and Ghazipur --- for over 70 days.
However, on Monday, the Delhi Police Commissioner, S N Shrivastava, called back its additional force to their original postings, who were deployed across the National Capital’s borders during the Kisan tractor rally.
In an order issued by Dr Mukesh Chander, the Special Commissioner of Police, Operations and Licensing, it was stated that as per desired by the Delhi Commissioner of Police, the additional forces deployed to maintain law and order and during kisan rally will go back to their districts and units with effect from February 9.
“All concerned districts where the additional force is deployed are directed to relieve the force by 6 PM on Monday to their respective district and unit for further duties,” stated the letter.