Farmers’ protest: Home minister Amit Shah invites protesting farmers for talks at 7 pm today
“We are going to Singhu Border now and from there we will go to the Home Minister,” said Rakesh Tikait, Spokesperson, Bharatiya Kisan Union
FollowNew Delhi: Home minister Amit Shah has invited a group of protesting farmers for a meeting at 7pm Tuesday, two farm union leaders who will be attending the meet have said.
"We have a meeting with the Home Minister at 7 pm today. We are going to Singhu Border now and from there we will go to the Home Minister," news agency ANI quoted Rakesh Tikait, the spokesperson of the Bharatiya Kisan Union as saying.
The meeting, likely to take place at Shah’s residence, comes a day ahead of a crucial round of talks between farm unions and the government, the sixth time the two sides will be meeting to resolve a crisis sparked by a set of farm-reform laws approved by Parliament in September.
Farmer unions on Tuesday staged a nationwide Bharat Bandh on account to protest against the new farm laws introduced by the Centre. Nearly all opposition parties and several trade unions supported and participated in the Bandh.
The Narendra Modi government, which projected the farm laws as the long-overdue reforms in the agriculture sector, has failed to convince farmers in five rounds of talks held so far.
The protesting farmers fear the new laws will pave the way for eliminating the safety of the Minimum Support Price cushion and do away with 'mandis', leaving them at the mercy of big corporates.
The government maintains the new laws will bring farmers better opportunities and usher in new technologies in agriculture.
