Punjab: Thousands of people attended the Mahapanchayat, talks between farmers and central team today
Punjab: In a show of strength hours ahead of their crucial talks with the central team in Chandigarh, farmer unions on Thursday held their third Kisan Mahapanchayat at Shambhu border to mark the first anniversary of Kisan Andolan 2.0. The mahapanchayat was attended by thousands of farmers from Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand. Similar mahapanchayats were held at Ratanpura and Khanauri in Rajasthan on February 11 and 12 respectively. Farmer leader Sarwan Singh Pandher said 43 farmers lost their lives during the recent agitation. Shubkaran Singh (22) was shot at Khanauri on February 21, 2024. Over 450 farmers were injured, including 35 seriously injured, five lost vision in one eye and 17-year-old Jaskaran lost his right hand in a gunshot wound. The unions have decided to mark the first anniversary of Shubkaran Singh at his native village Ballo in Bathinda on February 21. Farmer leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal, whose indefinite fast entered the 80th day on Thursday, confirmed his commitment to attend the meeting. Abhimanyu Kohar confirmed that Dallewal may participate in the talks with the central team on February 14. Sources said SKM (non-political) and KMM have finalised their respective 14-member delegations to participate in the discussions and place their demands before the government panel. These delegations will be led by Jagjit Singh Dallewal and Sarwan Singh Pandher. With limited progress on key issues, the upcoming meeting with the government is being seen as a crucial opportunity for the farmers. Their key demands include legal guarantee of MSP, implementation of Swaminathan Commission recommendations and complete farm loan waiver. Meanwhile, the recent victory of the BJP in the Delhi Assembly elections has reportedly given the ruling party a psychological edge ahead of the talks. Sources in the farmer unions suggest that this electoral success, coupled with the BJP’s performance in the Lok Sabha and Haryana assembly elections, could influence the direction of the discussions.
Prahlad Joshi to lead central team
Union minister Prahlad Joshi will lead a central delegation to hold talks with delegations comprising 14 members each of SKM (non-political) and KMM in Chandigarh on Friday. Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Cheema said he has not yet received any invitation from the Centre to attend the meeting and act as a mediator between the two sides.
