Over 30 leaders of different farmers’ unions reached the Vigyan Bhavan in the national Capital to hold talks with the Centre on their demands on Tuesday afternoon, as the agitation against three newly-passed agriculture laws entered its sixth day, reported ANI.
Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar, along with some other of his colleagues from the Cabinet were present from the government’s side for the meeting.
“Som Parkash Ji, Piyush Goyal ji and I will be present in the meeting,” Tomar told ANI. “The options which we will offer to them [farmers] will depend on the exact demands which they present.”
Ahead of the meeting, Jagjit Singh Dallewal of the Bharatiya Kisan Union told NDTV that the government has invited them for the talks without any precondition.
“About 35 representatives will go, and we will demand the laws be repealed,” Dallewal said. “We will also demand a law on MSP [minimum support price]. If the government does not agree, the protests will continue.”
The talks are being held after the Centre on Monday invited the farmers for a meeting on 3 pm on Tuesday. Earlier, the talks were supposed to be held on December 3, but amid the escalating protests, the Centre decided to meet earlier, citing the cold weather and the prevailing coronavirus situation.
On Tuesday morning, Union Home Minister Amit Shah met Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Tomar at Bharatiya Janata Party chief JP Nadda’s residence. This was the second meeting of the senior BJP leaders in less than 48 hours.
Farmers from neighbouring states of the national Capital, mostly Punjab and Haryana, have been demonstrating since last week and have blocked multiple borders of Delhi. They have alleged that the government wants to discontinue the minimum support price regime in the name of reforms brought through the new laws. The government has maintained that farm laws will bring farmers better opportunities and usher in new technologies in agriculture.
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