Farmer unions at a press conference at Singhu Border. (Express Photo: Praveen Khanna)Farmers’ Protest Live Updates: A 20-page proposal offered by the Centre was rejected by farmer unions on Wednesday for being “vague”. Farmers, who are steadfast in their demand that the three farm laws be repealed, said any further talks with the government would be based on the proposals they receive.
Farmers have threated to intensify their agitation by blocking more highways leading to Delhi. On December 14, they said the residences of BJP leaders, ministers and offices would be gheraoed, and dharnas would take place at district headquarters across the country. In the southern states, the protests would continue indefinitely.
In its proposal, the Centre had offered significant concessions including a written assurance on continuation of minimum support price (MSP)-based procurement and ensuring parity in transactions inside and outside existing Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) mandis. The proposal had been sent a day after 13 farmer leaders met Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar met Shah last evening, but there was no official statement on what transpired.
Meanwhile, a delegation of senior Opposition leaders, led by former Congress president Rahul Gandhi, NCP chief Sharad Pawar and Left leaders Sitaram Yechury and D Raja, submitted a memorandum to President Ram Nath Kovind Wednesday, urging him to persuade the government to repeal the contentious laws. “We urge upon you, as the custodian of the Indian Constitution, to persuade ‘your government’ not to be obdurate and accept the demands raised by India’s annadatas,” the petition read.
Farmers have been camping in the bitter cold at Delhi’s borders for 15 days now. At least seven farmers have died, four in accidents and three of natural causes.
Protest by various organisations in Chandigarh during the Bharat bandh on Tuesday. (Express photo by Kamleshwar Singh)
Farmers had called Bharat Bandh against the three central farm laws (Express Photo by Praveen Khanna)
Amid the deadlock between farmer unions and the central government, Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar has called an unprecedented meeting of the state’s entire top brass, including Divisional Commissioners, Deputy Commissioners, Inspectors General of Police and Superintendents of Police, on December 17. All the officers have been instructed to be “physically present” in Chandigarh on that day.
The orders issued, Wednesday, has raised many eyebrows since these were issued a day after Union Home Minister Amit Shah held talks with the farmer unions Tuesday.
A senior Haryana government officer told The Indian Express that “amid the ongoing tense atmosphere on Delhi’s borders and hardened stance adopted by the farmer unions, it is very tough for all the officers to leave their respective stations and be here in Chandigarh. But, an order is an order”. Read Varinder Bhatia's report
The ongoing farmers’ protest at Delhi borders has seen a swift rise in participation from Haryana with those not backing the protest being dubbed as "traitors" in the state’s villages. The "traitor" taunts are one among the many reasons that more from Haryana has come out in to back the stir. A farmer leader from Hisar, Suresh Koth, who is camping at Singhu border, said, "Almost 40 per cent of the total farmers at Singhu border are now from Haryana while the rest are from Punjab."
A farmer leader from Fatehabad, Mandeep Nathwan, who is camping at Tikri border since November 26, added, "At Tikri border, the number of farmers from Haryana and Punjab is almost equal but Haryana participation is likely to surpass Punjab numbers within a week." Read Sukhbir Siwach's report
Bharat Ramaswami, professor of economics at Ashoka University, writes: The uncomfortable truth is that while the new laws are not perfect, they represent a necessary direction for agricultural policy. Without developing new markets for the more dynamic lines of activity, agriculture, farmers and the economy will be stuck with a slow-moving cereal economy. This requires enabling policies and investments.
The BJP governs many states where it can demonstrate the power of liberating markets and literally allow a thousand flowers to bloom. That gives it the chance to disprove the narrative that these reforms are a corporate plot and provide concrete proof of the gains. Without doubt, economic success will melt opposition in Punjab as well. Read his opinion column here
Amid the harsh winter and the spike in complaints of fever and cold, families of several protesting farmers have joined them at Tikri border. Till date at least seven people taking part in the farmers’ protest have died — four of them in an accident and the others of natural causes such as cardiac arrest. Families of elderly farmers are now joining them from Punjab and Haryana, and some have set up camps to help protesters with food and beds. Read Jignasa Sinha's report
On Wednesday, a delegation of senior Opposition leaders, led by former Congress president Rahul Gandhi, NCP chief Sharad Pawar and Left leaders Sitaram Yechury and D Raja, met President Ram Nath Kovind and urged him to persuade the government to repeal the contentious laws. Here's a video from their press conference:
The arhtiyas, who are extending critical support to the ongoing farmers’ agitation, are often referred to as “bichauliya” or middlemen. But that is gross oversimplification. Commission agents play a complex and important role in the agri economy. There role also differs from state to state — which explains why Punjab-Haryana farmers are at the forefront of the ongoing protest. Read this explainer by Anju Agnihotri Chaba and Harish Damodaran
On October 13, the Number One item in the memorandum issued by protesting farmers was the demand for the repeal of the three Central farm laws passed in a controversial session of the Rajya Sabha on September 20. Today, December 9, after six rounds of talks, involving over 20 hours of deliberations, protests on the streets of Punjab, Haryana and the capital, farmer leaders were back to underlining the same item.
This lack of movement has hardened the divide and poses the main challenge as both sides work on their next steps, write Harikishan Sharma and Manraj Grewal Sharma. Read more here
Here's a recap of the events that transpired on Wednesday:
"We take decisions unanimously. It is about consensus and not majority," farmer leader Shiv Kumar Kakka said on Wednesday, explaining why the unions "completely" rejected the government proposal to amend the new agri laws.
He also said that there were no differences among farmer unions as was being reported by a section of the media. At the meeting of farmers' representatives on Wednesday afternoon, everybody agreed that the three new laws be scrapped and a specific law be enacted on the Minimum Support Price (MSP), he said.
"We take decisions unanimously. It is about consensus and not majority...it cannot be that some people are agreeing to it and others are not. If all unions say the laws should be scrapped, that's our decision...There is no question of having a personal opinion," Kakka said. "In all five meetings with the farmer unions, the government held marathon discussions on the same points (that figured in the proposal). Finally, we asked them (government) to answer in 'yes or no' whether they want to repeal the three new laws and guarantee MSP or not?" Kakka said.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Wednesday seemed to confuse two separate issues when he reiterated the UK government’s stance that any dispute between India and Pakistan was for the two countries to settle bilaterally.
British Sikh Labour MP Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi, who has been leading a drive to keep the protests by the Indian farmers against the government’s agricultural reforms in the news in Britain, repeated one of his previous Twitter statements on the issue in the House of Commons during the weekly Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs) session.
ohnson, in his brief response, went on to address a completely unrelated matter instead.
“Our view is that of course we have serious concerns about what is happening between India and Pakistan but these are pre-eminently matters for those two governments to settle and I know that he appreciates that point," he said.
Haryana Congress president Kumari Selja and Indian National Lok Dal leader Abhay Singh Chautala on Wednesday met protesting farmers separately at Tikri border and said the entire country stands behind them against the Centre's new farm laws. Selja, who had on Monday met farmers near Singhu border, extended full support to their agitation.
Chautala, the lone INLD MLA in Haryana assembly, on Wednesday said he would be the first to resign if the farmers seek resignation of all elected representatives.
"If farmers' organisations say that all politicians elected to the Lok Sabha or the Vidhan Sabha with their help and votes should tender resignation and stand with them, Abhay will be the first to resign," he told reporters after meeting farmers. "If the central government's intent is clear, it should rollback the three black laws, which are like a death warrant for the farmers," he added.
Union minister Raosaheb Danve on Wednesday claimed that China and Pakistan were behind the ongoing protests by farmers, who are seeking repeal of three new farm laws.
He also alleged that Muslims were earlier misled over the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC), but as those efforts did not succeed, now farmers were being told that they will face losses due to the new laws.
Danve was speaking at the inauguration of a health centre at Kolte Takli in Badnapur taluka of Maharashtra's Jalna district. "The agitation that is going on is not that of farmers. China and Pakistan have a hand behind this. Muslims in this country were incited first. What was said (to them)? That NRC is coming, CAA is coming and Muslims will have to leave this country in six months. Did a single Muslim leave?
"Those efforts didn't succeed and now farmers are being told that they will face losses. This is the conspiracy of other countries," Danve said.
(PTI)
Tamil Nadu is the only non-BJP ruled state which has supported the three new farm laws, DMK MP and women's wing secretary M K Kanimozhi said on Wednesday.
Stating that the laws deprived farmers of their rights, she alleged that Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palanisamy has betrayed the farmers by supporting the laws introduced by the BJP government at the Centre. While addressing the farmers in nearby Pollachi, the DMK
MP said the laws were opposed by Chief Ministers of states ruled by non-BJP parties.
Punjab BJP chief Ashwani Sharma on Wednesday dubbed the farmers decision to reject the Centre's proposal to amend the new farm laws as "unfortunate". He urged the protesting farmers to review their decision. "It was unfortunate that farmer leaders have rejected the proposed amendments to the three agriculture bills," Sharma said in a statement here. He said the Centre has addressed all the major concerns about the minimum support price (MSP) and the mandi system in the proposed amendments which the farmers should accept with grace. "The respect for farmers had prompted the Centre to address the issues which affected the community, and in all fairness, the protestors should have accepted the offer," he said.
Addressing a press conference here, farmer leader Shiv Kumar Kakka said there was nothing new in the government's proposal, and that it was "completely rejected" by the 'Sanyukta Kisan Committee' in its meeting on Wednesday. Farmer union leaders termed the proposal an "insult" to the farmers of the country. They, however, said if the government sends a fresh proposal of talks, they may consider it.
The Uttarakhand BJP on Wednesday accused opposition parties of instigating farmers against the Centre for political gains and said the new agri laws were meant for the welfare of the farming community. Pradesh BJP president Bansidhar Bhagat said the MSP regime will continue, the monopoly of middlemen will come to an end and farmers will have the freedom of selling their produce in the market of their choice.
"Instead of farmers, it is the opposition parties that are agitating against the new farm laws. They are provoking farmers by spreading lies among them for their own political gains," Bhagat said. "Meant for the welfare of farmers, the new laws will revolutionise their economy," he said.
Bhagat said "no government in the past cared as much for farmers as the Narendra Modi government". Under the Modi government, he said, the budgetary allocation for the agriculture sector rose to 1.34 lakh crore from just Rs 12,000 crore during UPA.
Addressing a press conference, Farmer leader Shiv Kumar Kakka said protesting farmers might take a call on crossing Singhu border to enter Delhi in coming days. He also said that farmers will block Agra-Delhi Expressway on December 12 and no tax will be be paid on that day at any toll plaza in country. Further threatnening to intensify protests, he said that district headquarters in states will be gheraoed on December 14. (PTI)
A delegation of senior opposition leaders led by former Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday met President Ramnath Kovind. They have submitted a memorandum to the President asking to repeal agriculture laws. 'We informed the President that it is absolutely critical that these anti-farmer laws are taken back,' said Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.
'We have given a memorandum to the President. We are asking to repeal agriculture laws and electricity amendment bill that were passed in anti-democratic manner without proper discussions and consultations,' CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury said.
Soon after farmers rejected draft proposal and threatened to intensify protests, Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar has reached Home Minister Amit Shah's residence.
Farmers have threatned to gherao BJP offices on December 14. They also said there will sitins across the country. The also said that they will boycott Reliance/Adani/Ambani establishments/products across the country.