KAUSHAMBI: Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader Rakesh Tikait has called for state-wise compensation and employment for the kin of farmers who lost their lives while agitating against the farm laws.
Speaking to ANI, ahead of the scheduled meeting of Samyukt Kisan Morcha today, Tikait said, "Our demand for minimum support price (MSP) is from the Government of India. The talks have just started, we will see how it goes. We won't develop any strategies today, we will only discuss how the agitation should move forward."
Tikait further said that the talks between Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and farmers, which was held on Friday, remained inconclusive.
"Talks between Haryana CM and farmers yesterday remained inconclusive, although they have agreed to take back the cases registered against farmers. Like Punjab, we need state-wise compensation for deaths of farmers and employment," he added.
On November 19, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that the Centre will bring necessary bills in the Winter Session of Parliament beginning later this month to repeal the farm laws. The Prime Minister also said that the government will constitute a committee to work on a new framework for Minimum Support Price (MSP).
Both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha passed the Farm Laws Repeal Bill on the first day of the winter session on November 29. President Ram Nath Kovind has also given his assent to the Bill that completes the process of repealing the three farm laws.
The SKM called off a planned tractor march to Parliament on November 29 and said that it would wait until December 4 for the Union government to formally respond to its demands, which it had stated in an open letter to the Prime Minister.
Farmers have been protesting against the farm laws on various borders of Delhi since November 26, 2020.
Meanwhile, Samyukt Kisan Morcha, an aegis of farmers' union, is likely to take action on the ongoing farmers' agitation on Saturday, days after the Parliament passed the Farm Laws Repeal Bill.
The SKM said that they have decided to wait for the union government to respond formally and fully to all the demands raised by it in its letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
An official communication by the SKM on November 28 read, "Samyukt Kisan Morcha has decided to wait for the Government of India to respond formally and fully to all the demands raised by it in its letter to the Prime Minister of India on November 21. SKM decided to give more time to the Central Government by suspending the planned Tractor March to Sansad from November 29. Protesting farmers will take a decision on further action, in the next meeting fixed on December 4 of Samyukt Kisan Morcha."
Bharatiya Kisan Union national spokesperson Rakesh Tikait on November 27 had said that SKM has given time till December 4 to the government to listen to the farmer's demands.
"That (SKM's scheduled march to the Parliament on November 29) has been postponed. We have given time to the Central government until December 4 to think. Committee will take its further decision on December 4," Tikait said.
Earlier, Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar had reiterated that farmers should end their agitation and go home.