Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar said Thursday that the Center was ready to speak out and address farmers’ concerns about farm laws. He said again that the government had no ego.
All of India Kisan Sabha General Secretary Hannan Mollah responded to the accusations by Union Minister Raosaheb Danve, calling it an insult to farmers. Danve has claimed that farmers protesting the new agricultural laws were incited by Pakistan and China, in the same way that Muslims in India were provoked to agitate against the Citizenship Amendment Act.
As the protests intensified over the past two weeks, several Narendra Modi government leaders have called the farmers “wrong” and claimed they have “Khalistani and Maoist” ties, without providing evidence to support their claim.
Meanwhile, farmers’ unions on Wednesday rejected a written proposal sent by the Center, detailing the amendments it was willing to make to the three farm laws. The agricultural unions said they would strengthen their agitation with a national protest on December 14.
Farmers, mostly from Punjab and Haryana, have been camping along Delhi’s borders for 15 days, saying they will not leave until the government repeals what they have called the “black laws.” The Center has tried to allay farmers’ fears about the new laws in several rounds of talks, offering to make amendments, but has refused to repeal the laws.
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