NEW DELHI: A day ahead of the sixth round of talks between the farmers and Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar, Home Minister Amit Shah intervened on Tuesday evening for the first time by inviting the leaders for negotiations and indicating the government's willingness to discuss some of the changes in the three controversial farm bills.
He tried to take matters in his hands after noting the impact of the Bharat Bandh and the possibility of the protest spreading to other states. He reportedly even offered a guarantee on the Minimum Support Price (MSP) as a bargain chip to cool down the frayed tempers.
Shah apparently tried to drive a wedge by inviting only eight of the leaders and not all the 25 who were thus far holding talks with the government, besides five others, including Rakesh Tikait of UP's Bharat Kisan Union and former CPI(M) MP Hannan Mollah, who heads the All India Kisan Sabha.
The government also tried to paint a picture of the farmers being themselves a divided house on repeal of the three laws, as demanded by Punjab farmers and a group of 20 from Haryana. The Haryana group, led by Attar Singh Sandhu, president of the breakaway BKU group, has given a memorandum to the Agriculture Minister supporting the three laws, provided certain amendments are made.
Shah has also reiterated an offer made by the agriculture minister in one of the meetings to form a committee comprising representatives of the government, farmers and experts to examine all the three laws and knock out whatever is not acceptable to the farmers. The farmer leaders had shot down the offer, insisting on repeal of the laws.
The farmer leaders were invited to Shah's residence at Krishna Menon Marg, but the venue was later shifted to the Pusa guest house of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research for security reasons since many VVIPs, including Chief Justice of India Sharad Bobde and other judges reside in the vicinity.
Shah is reported to have told the farmer leaders at the very start that they should not be misled by the Opposition propaganda as the three laws were brought to help them and the government is willing to make any changes that satisfy them.
He also offered to give in writing that the Minimum Support Price will not be abolished and the government was even prepared to give the statutory guarantee to remove any doubts about its intent. He dwelt on Prime Minister Modi's commitment to double the farmer's income and said the laws are meant to achieve that end.
As regards the Mandi system, Shah told the leaders that the local laws can be tweaked by the state governments and he would be the first to write to the chief ministers, seeking to tweak them.
Before going to meet Shah, farmer leader Rudru Singh Mansa told reporters at the protest venue at Delhi's border with Haryana: "There is no midway. We will demand just 'yes' or 'no' from the home minister." After the meeting, the farmer leaders said they got no concrete offers from the home minister, except an assurance that he would place their demands before the Union Cabinet on Wednesday morning.
Meanwhile, at the initiative of NCP supremo Sharad Pawar, leaders of 24 political parties will be meeting President Ramnath Kovind on Wednesday to explain why the government should roll back the disputed laws and then sit with the farmers to work out a new set of laws. Rahul Gandhi will be part of the delegation, the Congress said.
