BackFarmers' protest: SKM forms five-member committee to hold talks with Centre
The meeting assumes significance, as it is happening less than a week after the Centre had passed a bill in Parliament to repeal the three contentious farm laws.
PremiumSamyukt Kisan Morcha, the outfit that is leading the farmers' protest, on Saturday, after a meeting, formed a five-member committee to talk to the Modi government.
Several farmer leaders had gathered near the Singhu border on Saturday to discuss and deliberate upon the future course of the agitation.
The meeting assumes significance, as it is happening less than a week after the Centre had passed a bill in Parliament to repeal the three contentious farm laws.
SKM leaders, after the meeting, said they will not move from the Singhu Border here until cases filed against farmers are withdrawn and demanded an assurance in writing.
Bharatiya Kisan Union leader Rakesh Tikait announced that," It'll be the authorized body to talk to the Government. The committee will have Balbir Singh Rajewal, Shiv Kumar Kakka, Gurnam Singh Charuni, Yudhvir Singh & Ashok Dhawale. Next meeting of SKM on 7 December."
Tikait said that the next meeting of the Morcha will take place on December 7 at 11 AM to decide the future course of the movement.
Farm leader Darshan Pal Singh said that, "Leaders of all farmer organisations said that they won't go back unless cases against farmers are withdrawn. Today a clear cut signal has been sent out to Government that we're not going to take back the agitation unless all cases against farmers are taken back."
Farmer leaders on Friday had said any decision on whether to send five names to the Centre for a panel on MSP will be taken in the meeting as they have not yet received any formal communication from the government.
The farmers, however, concurred that SKM need not send any names for the panel, and "the MSP guarantee should be given".
Farmer leader and SKM member Ashok Dhawle said that the issues of compensation to be given for martyred farmers, "false cases" lodged against farmers and Lakhimpur Kheri incident were discussed in the meeting.
The farmers' protest against the new farm laws passed by the Modi government has been going on for over a year now. It started in November last year.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the birthday of Guru Nanak had announced that the farm laws would be repealed. On the first day of the inter session of Parliament on 29 November, a bill was passed without any opposition vote to repeal the farm laws.
But the stalemate continues as their other demands such as legal guarantee on MSP, compensation to families of farmers who died during the movement and withdrawal of cases against them are still to be met.
During the meeting, members also pondering over pending demands of the protesting farmers which include legal guarantee on minimum support price (MSP) of crops, withdrawal of cases against farmers, compensation to kin of farmers who lost their lives during the agitation.
The Centre on Tuesday had demanded five names from the SKM to form a panel to deliberate on MSP and other issues.
However, later on Friday the SKM in a statement had said that its leaders had received a phone call from the Centre on the issue but there was no formal communication.
The SKM, an umbrella body of 40 farmer unions, in a statement on Friday said that farmers struggle for pending demands continues as their is no formal assurance from the Centre as yet on them.
It said that permanent morchas in dozens of places continue at Delhi borders and elsewhere.
Milestone Alert!Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world 🌏 Click here to know more.
