The meeting between the leaders of farmers agitating against farm laws and the government on Tuesday was inconclusive and another round of talks will take place on Thursday. The Union’s agriculture minister, Narendra Singh Tomar, said the meeting with representatives of the protesting farmers was “good” and that the next round of talks is scheduled for Thursday. The minister told the media after the talks on Tuesday that the government was interested in forming a group, but the farmers’ leaders wanted the talks to take place with everyone.
“The meeting was good and we have decided that the talks will be held on December 3rd. We wanted a small group to be constituted but the peasant leaders wanted the talks to be done with everyone, we have no problem, ”said the minister. Tomar also called on farmers to suspend their protest. “We call on farmers to suspend the protests and come to the talks. However, this decision (to suspend the agitation) is up to the farmers’ unions and the farmers, ”he said.
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The government, during the course of the meeting in Vigyan Bhawan, suggested the creation of a committee to examine the issues raised by farmers protesting against the new agricultural laws, but it was rejected by representatives of 35 agitating organizations during its marathon meeting with three Union ministers that ended without any resolution. The government also made a detailed presentation to farmer leaders on the Minimum Subsistence Price (MSP) and the Agricultural Products Market Committee (APMC) Act during the meeting.
The protesting farmers fear that the Center’s farm laws would pave the way for the dismantling of the minimum support price (MSP) system, leaving them at the mercy of large corporations. The government has argued that the new laws will provide farmers with better opportunities and usher in new technologies in agriculture.
At the nearly three-hour meeting in Vigyan Bhawan, Tomar was accompanied by Minister of Railways and Trade and Industry Piyush Goyal and Minister of State for Commerce Som Parkash, also a deputy from Punjab.
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After the meeting, the president of the Bharat Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan), Joginder Singh Ugrahan, said that it was not conclusive and that the government had called another meeting on December 3. Ugrahan, the leader of one of the largest blocs of farmers who have been protesting laws, said the government will come to a solution after hearing from representatives of farmers’ organizations. “Farmers organizations rejected the government’s proposal to form a five-member committee to study issues related to the new agricultural laws,” Roopsingh Sanha, a member of the Bharatiya Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan), told PTI.
However, the government was firm in its position that a high-level committee should be formed to examine the problems and wanted the farmers’ representatives to continue considering the proposal. PTI reported citing sources that ministers were of the view that it was difficult to reach a decision while interacting with such large groups and therefore suggested meeting with a smaller group, but farmer leaders were adamant that they would meet only collectively .
Union leaders said they feared the government might be trying to break their unity and the momentum of their protest. “The government asked us to give the names of 5-7 members to form a small committee for a better discussion, but we rejected it. We said that we will all be present, ”said BKU (Dakaunda) Bathinda District President Baldev Singh. “The government is insisting on a small group because they want to divide us. We know very well the tricks of the government ”, he alleged.
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After the meeting held in Delhi’s Vigyan Bhawan, a member of the farmers’ delegation said that his movement against the three agricultural laws will continue. “We will definitely get something back from the government, be it bullets or a peaceful solution. We will return for more discussions with them, ”Chanda Singh told ANI.
The PTI news agency reported citing officials that another round of meetings took place later in the evening at the agriculture ministry with representatives from the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU). BKU leader Naresh Tikait also said that another delegation of peasant leaders will meet with the government at 7 pm. He said topics other than recently enacted farm laws are likely to be discussed as well, and mentioned energy fees for farmers among likely talking points.
The meeting was expected to be attended by representatives from Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Uttarakhand, Tikait told reporters at the Delhi-Ghaziabad border as he addressed the meeting. This meeting began shortly after the end of the first with a much larger group in Vigyan Bhawan, where the farmers’ representatives were unanimous in seeking the repeal of the three laws that they have described as contrary to the interests of the farming community.
Opposition parties have also stepped up pressure by asking the Center to “respect the democratic struggle” of the peasants and repeal the laws.
An earlier meeting on November 13 had failed to make a breakthrough and the next was originally scheduled for December 3, but moved forward due to ongoing protests on the Delhi borders. Peaceful sit-ins by farmers, mostly from Punjab and Haryana, continued at the Singhu and Tikri borders with no adverse incidents reported after Friday’s violence, while the number of protesters increased on the Ghazipur border on Monday.
(With contributions from the agency)
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