NEW DELHI: The protesting farmer unions on Saturday decided to continue their protests until they get “formal and satisfactory written response” from the Centre on their six demands, and formed a five-member committee which, they said, would talk to the government and work together for resolving the pending issues to its “logical conclusion”.
Withdrawal of an estimated over 55,000 cases registered against farmers by different state police and railways, and compensation to kin of those who died during year-long protests, however, turned out to be their two most pressing demands at this juncture. The majority of the cases (around 48,000 as claimed by unions) were registered in Haryana with the remaining ones being reported from Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chandigarh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Delhi.
Farmer unions will meet again on December 7, waiting for two more days to get any concrete response from the government over their six demands, including a legal guarantee to the procurement of crops at minimum support price (MSP), which they enlisted in their email to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 21.
Though the Centre has, so far, not invited the unions for any talk, the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) – a joint platform of farmer unions – through its decision on Saturday sought to send a clear signal of a way out to at least wind-up protests along Delhi borders if it gets a proposal for talks to resolve the pending issues through working with the government. This approach, many participants believe, would also be necessary in view of the upcoming hearing in the Supreme Court which, they think, may now take a different view of protests on highways and toll gates after the repeal of laws.
“Leaders of all farmer unions are of the firm view that they won’t go back and the agitation will continue until cases against farmers are withdrawn,” said Darshan Pal, leader of SKM that met at Singhu Border to brainstorm on their next course of action in the wake of the government’s informal missive to them over sending five names for a proposed committee that may look into farm-related issues including MSP.
Though the SKM formed its own committee of five members, it clarified that this team is not in response to what the government wanted from the unions for a larger proposed panel to discuss farm issues including MSP. The five-member SKM team includes Ashok Dhawale (All India Kisan Sabha), Balbir Singh Rajewal (BKU – Rajewal), Gurnam Singh Chaduni (BKU – Haryana), Shiv Kumar ‘Kakkaji’ (farmer leader from Madhya Pradesh) and Yudhvir Singh (BKU – Tikait).
The SKM said this team would “negotiate with the government for resolving the pending issues… This five-member Committee will, in turn, also decide on state-level teams that might have to work along with some state governments on some of the issues (pertaining to their demands such as withdrawal of cases and compensation).”
Farmer leaders are learnt to have discussed the issue of withdrawal of cases as the topmost priority in their meeting on Saturday, citing examples of 2016 agitation for the demand of reservation for Jats. They noted that cases were registered against many protesters and most of them still have to take rounds of different courts. Many participants in the meeting also raised the issue of seized tractors/trolleys of farmers by police.
Though the Haryana government in its meeting with farmer representatives on Friday informally agreed to find ways to withdraw cases against farmers, there was no written assurance considering due processes of law and involvement of courts in such matters. The farmer unions, however, insisted on some written assurance both on the withdrawal of cases and compensation issues. They have also shared the list of deceased farmers with the state government.
“Farm unions of India have a bitter experience from the past of securing only oral assurances and ending their agitation and finding that governments renege on the meagre oral assurances too. We will not end this agitation without formal responses on each of the issues being raised by us. We want to see all the cases foisted against farmers as well as their supporters as part of this movement to be withdrawn and such an assurance coming formally”, said SKM leaders in a statement after the meeting.
Besides withdrawal of cases, and compensation to kin of over 700 deceased farmers and allotment of land for a memorial to be built for them, the other four pending demands of farmer unions include legal entitlement for all farmers to realise remunerative MSP for any agricultural produce that they sell; withdrawal of Electricity Amendments Bill; deletion of environmental compensation clause (Section 15) in the law related to setting up of a Commission for Delhi Air Quality regulation, and “arrest and sacking” of the Union minister of state for home affairs Ajay Mishra over the Lakhimpur Kheri incident.
Withdrawal of an estimated over 55,000 cases registered against farmers by different state police and railways, and compensation to kin of those who died during year-long protests, however, turned out to be their two most pressing demands at this juncture. The majority of the cases (around 48,000 as claimed by unions) were registered in Haryana with the remaining ones being reported from Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chandigarh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Delhi.
Farmer unions will meet again on December 7, waiting for two more days to get any concrete response from the government over their six demands, including a legal guarantee to the procurement of crops at minimum support price (MSP), which they enlisted in their email to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 21.
Though the Centre has, so far, not invited the unions for any talk, the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) – a joint platform of farmer unions – through its decision on Saturday sought to send a clear signal of a way out to at least wind-up protests along Delhi borders if it gets a proposal for talks to resolve the pending issues through working with the government. This approach, many participants believe, would also be necessary in view of the upcoming hearing in the Supreme Court which, they think, may now take a different view of protests on highways and toll gates after the repeal of laws.
“Leaders of all farmer unions are of the firm view that they won’t go back and the agitation will continue until cases against farmers are withdrawn,” said Darshan Pal, leader of SKM that met at Singhu Border to brainstorm on their next course of action in the wake of the government’s informal missive to them over sending five names for a proposed committee that may look into farm-related issues including MSP.
Though the SKM formed its own committee of five members, it clarified that this team is not in response to what the government wanted from the unions for a larger proposed panel to discuss farm issues including MSP. The five-member SKM team includes Ashok Dhawale (All India Kisan Sabha), Balbir Singh Rajewal (BKU – Rajewal), Gurnam Singh Chaduni (BKU – Haryana), Shiv Kumar ‘Kakkaji’ (farmer leader from Madhya Pradesh) and Yudhvir Singh (BKU – Tikait).
The SKM said this team would “negotiate with the government for resolving the pending issues… This five-member Committee will, in turn, also decide on state-level teams that might have to work along with some state governments on some of the issues (pertaining to their demands such as withdrawal of cases and compensation).”
Farmer leaders are learnt to have discussed the issue of withdrawal of cases as the topmost priority in their meeting on Saturday, citing examples of 2016 agitation for the demand of reservation for Jats. They noted that cases were registered against many protesters and most of them still have to take rounds of different courts. Many participants in the meeting also raised the issue of seized tractors/trolleys of farmers by police.
Though the Haryana government in its meeting with farmer representatives on Friday informally agreed to find ways to withdraw cases against farmers, there was no written assurance considering due processes of law and involvement of courts in such matters. The farmer unions, however, insisted on some written assurance both on the withdrawal of cases and compensation issues. They have also shared the list of deceased farmers with the state government.
“Farm unions of India have a bitter experience from the past of securing only oral assurances and ending their agitation and finding that governments renege on the meagre oral assurances too. We will not end this agitation without formal responses on each of the issues being raised by us. We want to see all the cases foisted against farmers as well as their supporters as part of this movement to be withdrawn and such an assurance coming formally”, said SKM leaders in a statement after the meeting.
Besides withdrawal of cases, and compensation to kin of over 700 deceased farmers and allotment of land for a memorial to be built for them, the other four pending demands of farmer unions include legal entitlement for all farmers to realise remunerative MSP for any agricultural produce that they sell; withdrawal of Electricity Amendments Bill; deletion of environmental compensation clause (Section 15) in the law related to setting up of a Commission for Delhi Air Quality regulation, and “arrest and sacking” of the Union minister of state for home affairs Ajay Mishra over the Lakhimpur Kheri incident.