Farmer leaders threaten to walk out from meeting if demands not met

Farmer group representatives on Saturday said they will walk out of the fifth round of talks with the Central Government if the government does arrive at a decision on the

Farmer group representatives on Saturday said they will walk out of the fifth round of talks with the Central Government if the government does arrive at a decision on the demands of the agitating farmers.

“The government should make a decision on our demands, otherwise, we are walking out of the meeting,” farmer leaders said during the talks with the Central Government at Vigyan Bhavan here.

Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar requested farmer leaders in the meeting to ask the elderly and children at the protest site to return to their homes.”I appeal to all of you to kindly ask senior citizens and children from the protest site to go home,” Tomar said.

Prior to the meeting with Centre, the third in this week, the farmers had demanded the complete rollback of farms laws.

A farmer leader said that they had come prepared for the long haul and were prepared to continue their protests if their demands are not met.

“We have brought with us material to last us a year. We’ve been on road for the past several days. If govt wants us to stay on road, we’ve no problem. We won’t take path of violence. Intelligence Bureau will inform you what we’re doing at the protest site,” one of the leaders at the meeting with the Centre said.

Kulwant Singh Sandhu, General Secretary, Jamhoori Kisan Sabha, Punjab who was attending today’s meeting with central government representatives said, “The MPs had raised the issue in Canada’s parliament, then Canadian PM wrote a letter to Indian government. If Canada’s parliament can discuss the issue, why can not our parliament do it ?”

Meanwhile, Punjabi actor-singer Diljit Dosanjh met protesting farmers at Singhu border of Delhi and appealed to the government to look into the demands of the famers and end the stalemate.

Farmers from Bilaspur and Uttarakhand today reached the Ghazipur border (UP-Delhi border) and joined protesting farmers stationed at the Delhi-Meerut Expressway.

Before the meeting farmer leaders demanded the complete rollback of farms laws.

“We want to complete rollback of the laws. If the government doesn’t accept our demand, we will continue our agitation,” Harjinder Singh Tanda, state chief of Azad Kisan Sangharsh Committee, Punjab told ANI.

“We want the withdrawal of the laws. We won’t accept government’s offer to amend the laws,” said Harsulinder Singh of Doaba Kisan Sangharsh Committee.

A written reply of the minutes of the last meeting was given to the farmers after farmers’ representatives asked the Government to give a pointwise written reply.

Tomar and Union Food and Railways Minister Piyush Goyal are leading the talks with the farmer groups.

Ahead of the talks at Vigyan Bhawan, senior leaders including Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and other ministers met and briefed Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

On December 3, the farmers held the fourth round of talks with the Centre and said the government had talked of bringing some amendments to farm laws. In the fourth round of the meeting, farmer leaders suggested the government to hold a special session of the Parliament and sought the abolition of the three farm laws.

The farmers’ agitation at Delhi borders and national capital entered the tenth day today, with a large number of farmers gathered in and around the national capital to protest against the three farm laws.

Meanwhile, a nationwide shutdown has been called by the protesting farmers on December 8.

The farmers are protesting against the Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020. (ANI)

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