Protesting farmers have called off their year long agitation after the government yielded to all their demands following extreme negotiations initiated by Union Home Ministry.
The Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) – the umbrella body of farmers’ unions spearheading the protests – had said last evening that their 14-month agitation will be called off at 12pm on Thursday, but only after they receive the final copy of the government’s revised proposal accepting their demands.
Demands of the protesting farmers:
- Withdrawal of all the agitation-related cases registered during this protest in all states and Union territories, or under central government agencies, etc.
- Compensation to all the families of the agitating farmers who died during the course of agitation.
- No criminal liability to farmers in the cases of stubble burning.
- The government has to discuss the Electricity Amendment Bill with the SKM or with other farmers’ unions before bringing it up in Parliament.
- A committee to discuss minimum support price (MSP) is to be formed; the SKM will list out their members in the panel and provide it to the farmers.
- The ongoing policy on MSP and its procurement in the country will continue as it is.
The farmers’ unions have planned a Fateh Ardas (victory prayer) at 5:30 pm today, and a Fateh March (victory march) at Singhu and Tikri protest sites on Delhi’s borders on December 11 around 9 am, sources said, and added that Punjab farm leaders plan to pay obeisance at the Golden Temple in Amritsar on December 13. The Samyukta Kisan Morcha, or SKM, will hold another meeting in Delhi on December 15.
The Centre had yesterday sent a written draft proposal to the SKM’s five-member committee following a November 21 letter from the SKM to PM Modi listing six demands. Farmers had pointed out that repeal of the contentious laws was only one of the several concerns they had raised, and refused to leave after PM Modi announced the cancelling of the laws and requested them to go back.
The Centre has also agreed to drop all police cases against farmers – this includes stubble burning complaints and those filed by Haryana and Uttar Pradesh in connection with violent clashes with security forces over the past several months. It has assured the farmers that all cases against them relating to the protests will be immediately withdrawn, and has appealed to all states to do the same.
Haryana and Uttar Pradesh have given in-principle agreement to compensation for farmers who lost their lives, and Punjab has already made an announcement, the Centre’s letter says.
The protesting farmers have been suspicious of the government’s intent and had asserted that they would leave after all cases registered against them during the protests, and also those relating to stubble burning, were cancelled