Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), the umbrella of forty organisations leading the farmers protests, has published a statement regarding the current state of affairs and the plan for the coming days.
“The impressive series of farmer Mahapanchayats continue to unfold in a massive outpour of support to the farmers’ movement. Today, tens of thousands of farmers participated in Bilari and Bahadurgarh Mahapanchayats. Several SKM leaders spoke in these rallies. Farmers vowed that they will not allow corporations to profiteer in the name of Food and at the expense of farmers. “Hunger is not a business opportunity and shame on those governments and corporations that think so”, they said.
So far, 228 protestors have sacrificed their lives and became martyrs in this agitation. It is shameful that the government is admitting on the floor of the parliament that it has no plans to extend support to the families of such martyrs,” the statement says.
“The government is to be blamed squarely for the lives lost”, said SKM. “How many more lives does the government want to see sacrificed before it agrees to the legitimate demands of the protestors? We condemn the insensitivity of the government,” SKM has stated.
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The statement further reads, “The government is clearly afraid of the strengthening movement and is trying to choke the voices of citizens and democracy in numerous ways. SKM condemns the continuing attacks on media that is amplifying the voices of the movement, and the raids on NewsClick are the latest in this stifling of democracy.”
Regarding the future plans of the Samyukt Kisan Morcha, the statement says that, “On 14th of February, to expose the pseudo nationalism of the BJP government, against the backdrop of leaked top secret WhatsApp chat messages of a media house ally, and to show that farmers truly respect our jawans at the borders defending all of us, torch light processions/mashaal juloos and candle light vigils will be organised in villages and towns all over India. Homage will also be paid to martyred farmers in the movement. Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan motto of the movement will be reiterated.”
The farmers also paid respects to Prof Nanjundaswamy, who founded the Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha on his birth anniversary, 13th February.
