The Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) has formed a five-member committee for talks with the Central government regarding issues related to the farmers’ agitation, BKU leader Rakesh Tikait said on Saturday.
“The committee will be the authorised body to talk to the Government. The committee will have Balbir Singh Rajewal, Shiv Kumar Kakka, Gurnam Singh Charuni, Yudhvir Singh and Ashok Dhawale. The next meeting of the SKM will be held on December 7,” said Tikait.
The Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), a consortium of 40-odd farmers’ agitation, today held a crucial meeting and discussed the future course of farmers’ agitation.
However, the SKM has stated that the names announced today are not for MSP Committee as asked by Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led BJP government at the Centre. The five-member committee has been constituted to discuss pending demands from SM’s letter to the prime minister.
After the meeting, farmer leader Darshan Pal Singh said all the members have decided that the agitation will not be withdrawn unless cases against farmers are withdrawn.
“Today a clear cut signal has been sent out to the Central government that we’re not going to take back the agitation unless all cases against farmers are taken back,” Singh said.
The SKM has been demanding legal backing for, among others, Minimum Support Price (MSP), withdrawal of cases against the farmers’ families since last year, and compensation to the farmers’ families that died in the last one year during the agitation.
This comes days after the Parliament repealed the three contentious farm laws. Soon after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on November 19 about the repeal of farm laws, the SKM had written a formal letter to him putting forth their demands in no uncertain means.
“With no formal assurance from Government of India as yet, the farmers struggle for their still-pending demands continues. SKM has not received any reply from the government in response to the letter to the Prime Minister, where SKM had raised six key demands as a pre-condition for withdrawal of the farm movement,” a statement from the SKM said on Friday.
Meanwhile, the permanent morchas in dozens of places continue at Delhi borders and elsewhere, “reflecting the discipline and determination that protesting farmers have”, the SKM release said.
Repeal of farm laws was one of the main demands of thousands of farmer protesters. But the stalemate continues as other demands of farmers such as legal guarantee on MSP, compensation to families of farmers who died during the movement and withdrawal of cases against them are still to be met.
