IT Correspondent
Mumbai, Jan 21:
Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar will be taking part in the protests against farm laws, to be organised at Azad Maidan in South Mumbai, on Monday, January 25.
Some social organisations are planning to hold protest demonstrations at Azad Maidan between January 23-25 and on the concluding day, a march will be organised from Azad Maidan to Raj Bhavan to submit a memorandum to the Governor Bhagatsingh Koshyari for forwarding it to the centre..
“Sharad Pawar will take part in the protest to be held at Azad Maidan on January 25. The NCP has opposed the farm laws. The chief minister and leaders of the ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) will also take part,” the national spokesperson of the NCP Nawab Malik said.
Pawar, who has been former Agriculture minister, has been a critic of the Centre’s farm laws. “I and Manmohan Singh also wanted to bring some reforms in the agriculture sector but not in the same way as the current dispensation did. That time the agriculture ministry held long deliberations on the proposed reforms with agriculture ministers of all states and experts of the sector,” Pawar had said earlier.
Meanwhile, the Central government and farmers will be holding yet another round of talks on Friday, January 22. The committee, appointed by the Supreme Court to resolve the logjam between the farmers and the government, met for the first time on Tuesday. The committee will hold discussions with farmers and farmers’ bodies in the country who are both pro and against the farm laws, one of the panellists, Anil Ghanwat said.
The Committee will soon send invitations to the farmers’ unions and associations to discuss their views on farm laws. Govt proposes to suspend farm laws for 1.5 to 2 years and move an affidavit in the Supreme Court if the farmers agree. The farmers leaders, however, have made it clear that they want the laws to be repealed and not a suspension. The farmers have been protesting against three farm acts at Delhi border since last 56 days.
