The newly-reconstituted farmers’ wing of the Congress party, All India Kisan Khet Mazdoor Congress, organised a Sansad Gherao (Parliament Gherao) rally on Tuesday at the Jantar Mantar to highlight farmers’ issues such as demand for farm loan waiver, implementing of the Swaminathan Committee report, and reducing input costs, among others.
The rally was spearheaded by former Lok Sabha MP Nana Patole, who had recently resigned from the Lok Sabha after accusing the BJP of “deceiving” the farmers and joined the Congress.
“We want to remind Prime Minister Narendra Modi about his promise to waive off loans. I want to ask farmers who have come here from different States if Modi ji has waived off loans,” Mr. Patole asked the farmers, who had mostly come from neighbouring Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Outer Delhi.
“If we carry our fight peacefully, on the path shown by Mahatma Gandhi, then in the next three months we can defeat Modi in no time. I want to tell our youth friends that we need to stand together with our farmers. We need to stand together with the poor. They are our strength and today is the start of our agitation,” he said.