Farmers’ leaders on Wednesday said that they are preparing to step-up their protest against the farm laws. During the nationwide strike on 26 March, all shops and other business establishments will remain shut for 12 hours, i.e., from 6:00 am to 6:00 pm, and copies of the farm laws will be burnt during the Holika Dahan of 28 March.
While addressing a press conference, Ranjit Raju of Ganganagar Kisan Samiti said “we will burn the copies of the three farm laws during Holi and hope that better sense prevails within the government, and it repeals the laws, and gives us a written guarantee for MSP.”
All trade and transport unions, students’ unions, youth and women’s are also supporting the upcoming bandh. Another farmer leader Purushottam Sharma said, “We are trying to create such meetings at the state level so that the strike is observed everywhere.”
All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) leader Krishna Prasad said “movement has managed to continue for as long as 112 days and is an achievement in itself, and it would only get stronger from now. And the Bharat bandh will happen at “state, zila, tehsil, and village levels.”
He also mentioned the central government’s move to introduce the Electricity Amendment Bill 2021. He said “any amendments made to the act would be in violation of the government’s commitment made to the farmers in January. During the 11 rounds of talks that we have had with the government, Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar said that they accepted our demands over the electricity bill.”
He added that the media wrote that 50% demands of the farmers’ movement are resolved but now the government is trying to introduce the act again. And this is cheating.
