Bhopal: Bharatiya Kisan Sangh (BKS) – an arm of the RSS – announced on Sunday evening that it was withdrawing the four-day-old state-wide agitation of the farmers after “acceptance of our demands by CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan.”
However, Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU), under whose banner farmers’ strike and agitation has been called, refused to budge stating that the protest will be continued till all their demands were met.
Announcing a slew of measures to pacify the agitating farmers, Chouhan declared that government will buy onions from farmers at Minimum Support Price (MSP) of Rs 8 per kilogram and also promised to withdraw all police cases registered against farmers during agitation.
The Chief Minister on Sunday held discussions with the functionaries of BKS during which he assured to protect the interest of the farmers and give them their due.
Following the meeting, Bharatiya Kisan Sangh secretary Shivkant Dixit announced that they have withdrawn the agitation and also called off their proposed gramband movement. Dixit told Free Press, “We held talks with Chouhan at Ujjain and he has conceded to our demands.”
A state government press note issued late in the evening confirmed the development.
However, the move is unlikely to have any major impact on the ongoing protest by the farmers, which has witnessed violence, clashes between traders and farmers, road blockades and innumerable incidents of vegetables, eggs, milk and other farm, dairy and poultry produce being dumped on the roads across the state.
And that is because the agitation is being primarily led by BKU and Aam Kisan Union, which have announced that their agitation would continue. The BKS was never a part of the farmers’ agitation and it was only on Saturday – the third day of the protest – that it had announced that it would extend its support and will give a call for ‘Gaon Band’ to demand solution to the problems of farmers.
Shailendra Verma, state secretary of BKU said, “Those who have announced withdrawal of the agitation are ‘dalals’ (agents) of the government. They are not with us. They are traitors. Our agitation would continue. ”He also announced a plan for state-wide massive road blockades on June 10. “Lakhs of farmers will take to the streets on that day, lathi in one hand and food in another. And they will not relent till our demands are met,” he said.
Chouhan, who was in Ujjain on the occasion of Ganga Dussehra, later addressing a press conference said that his government will take all steps for betterment of farmers. In an attempt to placate the farmers the chief minister announced that farmers will get 50 per cent cash for their produce sold at Krishi Upaj Mandi while the remaining payment will be carried out through Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) fund transfer system. In a bid to check prevailing commission culture, the government also plans to bring Krishi Upaj Mandis under the Mandi Act. The government will also make crop insurance scheme optional. They government will take necessary steps to drop all anti-farmer provisions under the act of town and country planning.
