Crucial Samyukt Kisan Morcha meet today, decision likely on future course of farmers' protest

Tikait with a sword at a Kisan Mahapanchayat in Lucknow. Pic/PTI

Samyukt Kisan Morcha's five-member committee will hold an urgent meeting in the national capital at 10 am on Wednesday and are likely to take a decision on the future course of action on farmers' protest. On Tuesday, Samyukta Kisan Morcha held a meeting to discuss the Centre's response and said that some pending issues still remain.

The farmers' body informed that the government, in its proposal, has asked them to first end the protest and only then cases against them will be taken back. Addressing the press conference after the meeting on Tuesday, SKM's Balbir Singh Rajewal said that they will not accept the government's condition that cases against farmers will be withdrawn after agitation is called off.

"Government's proposal says after we end the movement, then only will they withdraw cases. We are apprehensive about it. Government should immediately begin with the (cases' withdrawal) procedure. Final decision to be taken at tomorrow's meeting," said Balbir Singh Rajewal. Bharatiya Kisan Union's (BKU) Gurnam Singh Charuni said the Centre should follow the Punjab model while giving compensation to the kin of over 700 deceased farmers.

"For compensation to over 700 deceased farmers' kin, we want the Centre to follow Punjab model; Rs 5 lakh compensation and a job as announced by Punjab government should be implemented by Government of India as well," Charuni said. The SKM further said that they have sent a few suggestions and objections to the government's proposal on our pending demands. "The government wants both farmers and government officials should be part of the committee on MSP and other pending demands," they said.

On November 19, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that the Centre will bring necessary bills in the winter session of Parliament beginning later this month to repeal the farm laws.The Prime Minister also said that the government will constitute a committee to work on a new framework for Minimum Support Price (MSP). Both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha passed the Farm Laws Repeal Bill on the first day of the winter session on November 29. President Ram Nath Kovind has also given his assent to the Bill that completes the process of repealing the three farm laws.

The SKM called off a planned tractor march to Parliament on November 29 and said that it would wait until December 4 for the Union government to formally respond to its demands, which it had stated in an open letter to the Prime Minister. Farmers have been protesting against the farm laws on various borders of Delhi since November 26, 2020.

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