Mohali: A day after farmers’ union leaders met with the Center to discuss the three agricultural laws that have sparked unprecedented protests, farmers, union leaders and agriculture experts criticized the Union government’s proposal to form a committee. of five members to discuss the objections that farmers have made. about legislation.
At a press conference on the Singhu border on December 2, agitated farmers rejected the Center’s proposal for the formation of a committee and informed the media about the discussions expected to take place with the Center tomorrow. The discussions on December 3 will be the fourth round of talks between the agitator farmers and the Center.
“We don’t want a committee. We don’t want to have a point-by-point discussion with the government. We want the three black laws to be repealed, ”said Dr. Darshan Pal of the Krantikari Kisan Union of Punjab.
Peasant leaders said that although they do not want to have any negotiations, they have created a document with a detailed critique of the government’s laws and concluded with proof, in their document, that the laws should be repealed.
On December 1, the Center had asked the farmers’ unions for a detailed critique of the laws and to voice their objections at future meetings.
“The government wanted to confuse us and commit us with clauses of this and that, so by intuiting their tactics we have created a point-by-point criticism of the laws, where we argue that these laws should be repealed.”
‘Convene a special session of parliament’
Dr. Pal added that if the government has to convene a special session of parliament to repeal the agricultural laws, then they must too. “Legal experts have told us that the government will have to convene a special session of parliament, then they must, until then our agitation will continue,” he said.
Shiv Kumar Kakaji of Rashtriya Kisan Mahasangh said the demand to repeal the laws remains and that no negotiations will end the unrest.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi must call a special session of parliament and repeal the laws, that’s all. This is our demand, ”he said.
At the press conference, Dr. Darshan Pal and Yogendra Yadav from the Akhil Bharatiya Kisan Sangharsh Coordination Committee (ABKSCC) also said that the Center was trying to break the unity of farmers’ organizations.
“First only the agitator unions from Punjab were invited [for the meeting on December 1]But setting the ground on our own terms, we told the Center that the union leaders from Haryana, Madhya Pradesh and West Bengal will also be part of the discussions, and it happened, ”said Dr. Pal.
According to Pal, all meetings to be held with the Center in the future will have representatives from Saamyukta Kisan Morcha, which is an alliance of farmer leaders from across the country.
‘Center dodge tactics’
Activist Medha Patkar, present at the conference, said farmers have been successful in circumventing the government’s tactics.
“Who will meet, when will we meet and why we will meet, everything is decided by us and we will decide,” he said.
To show the diverse nature of the farmers’ protest and the force it is receiving across the country, leaders from Odisha, Maharashtra, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan also addressed the media.
In the coming days, the effigies of Prime Minister Modi along with the effigies of India’s wealthiest, Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani, will be burned across India, said leaders of Odisha, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala and Maharashtra.
Dr. Pal told the media that from Uttar Pradesh, Rakesh Tikait’s BKU is also part of their alliance and has given them their support.
Gurnam Chaduni from BKU’s Haryana Unit, along with other leaders, also thanked the athletes from Punjab and Haryana who have provided their support by returning prestigious civil awards.
‘Death by committee’
Earlier in the day, experts in agriculture and economics held another press conference in defense of democracy and the peasant movement. At the meeting, veteran journalist with experience in rural and agricultural affairs, P. Sainath, attacked the Center for once again suggesting the creation of a committee.
“I mean this government is taking the path of death by committee,” Sainath said.
“There has not been a day of discussion in parliament in so many years on the five six-volume reports that were created by the Swaminathan commission.”
M..G. Devasahayam, a retired IAS from the Haryana cadre and an active member of the democratic movements, said that the formation of committees is just a “fraud” that the government is trying to play with the agitating farmers.
Praveen Jha, a JNU economics professor with a background in labor and agriculture echoed this as well. He said that if the government is interested in creating a committee to deliberate on Indian agricultural issues, then it should be done only after the three agricultural laws are repealed for the first time.
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