Today, Farmer-leaders led by Rakesh Tikait of Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) met West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, at Nabanna, Kolkata. Today’s meeting took place at the Secretariat between Rakesh Tikait and Mamata Banerjee.
The issue discussed in the meeting was about the three controversial central farm-laws and how to increase the farmers’ agricultural output. The farmer-leaders met to seek her support for the ongoing farmers’ agitation against the new agriculture laws and for a Minimum Support Price for farm produce.
Also See: Overview of the Farmers’ unions in the protests
Yudhvir Singh, general secretary of the BKU stated, “We want to congratulate Mamata Banerjee for her electoral victory and to elicit her support for the move to give farmers a fair MSP for their crops.”
Mr Singh said that he also wants to impress upon Ms Banerjee to come up with MSP for fruits, vegetables and milk products in West Bengal. He added that “this will serve as a model” elsewhere. Today’s Tikait-Mamata meeting points to the increasing significance of Mamata Banerjee in national political scenario after declaration of state election result on May 2.
Absence of a specified MSP and glut in produce often leads to farmers suffering from extremely low prices. That results in huge losses, often leading to farmer suicides in many parts of the country.
Rakesh Tikait and other farmer-leaders have been leading the farmers’ movement on Delhi’s borders for nearly seven months against three laws passed by the Parliament. The farmers feel that the central farm-laws will commercialise agriculture without adequate protection to small farmers from exploitation by large retail chains and industry.
In the meeting, Rakesh Tikait requested CM Mamata Banarjee to write to the Centre. Apart from Yudhvir Singh and other prominent farmer-leaders, Yashwant Sinha was also present in the meeting.
Rakesh Tikait said that Mamata Banarjee has defeated BJP and could write to the Centre & help keep the farmers’ movement going on. She had earlier extended her support for the farmers. Farmer-leaders are expecting the same support once again to revive the movement. Today’s meeting at Nabanna was expected to deliberate the future of the Farm-laws. CM Banerjee’s support for the agitation which has drawn on the farmer community in rural north India, and from other states like TN, Kerala, Maharashtra, MP, & Rajasthan is being viewed as a potential booster which has been flagging in recent weeks, mainly due to second wave.
At a certain level, this meeting also signifies the growing importance of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in the national politics, especially after her resounding victory in the state assembly election.
