Protesting farmer leaders appear to have some ‘secret agenda’: Anil Vij

Chandigarh, June 10

Haryana Home Minister Anil Vij on Sunday suspected farmer leaders, protesting against the three farm laws, of having some “secret agenda” behind their opposition to the central legislation.

This is indicated by the fact that the farmer union leaders have never been able to support their objections to the laws with any “sound logic” during their talks with the Centre, he alleged.

He also pointed out that the Centre has never closed its doors for talks with the protesting farmers.

Vij made the remarks a day after Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar said that the government is ready to resume talks with protesting farmers but asked the unions to point out their objections to the provisions of the three farm laws with sound logic.

“Tomar Ji has clearly said the doors for talks are open. The government never closed its doors. There have already been 11-12 rounds of talks earlier,” Vij said.

“But farmers’ union leaders have not even once been able to point out what their objections to the farm laws are,” Vij told reporters in Ambala.

“They have not been able to point out the objections. From this, it appears that their agenda is not (repeal of) farm laws, but (they have) some secret agenda,” said Vij.

Scores of farmers have been camping at Delhi’s borders since November last year, demanding the rollback of laws and the enactment of a new law to guarantee the minimum support price (MSP) for their crops.

Several rounds of talks between the agitating farmers and the government have failed to break the deadlock over these contentious laws.

Protesting farmer leaders had on Wednesday reiterated that a complete repeal of the three farm laws and legal guarantee on MSP are their main demands after the government said it was ready to resume talks and asked them to point out their objections to the provisions of the legislation.

The last round of talks was held on January 22 to break the deadlock and end the farmers’ protest. Talks have not resumed following widespread violence during a tractor rally by protesting farmers on January 26. PTI