Farmers Protest Updates: Several Roads Remain Closed In Delhi

Don't Allow "Anti-Social" Elements Use Your Platform: Minister To Farmers

Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar on Friday said some "anti-social elements" are conspiring to spoil the atmosphere of the peasants' movement under the guise of farmers and appealed the protesting farming community to be vigilant against their platform being misused.

He also said the government is sensitive towards farmers and is in discussion with them and their representatives to resolve their concerns.

2 Delhi IPS Officers Posted At Farmers' Protest Site Test Covid Positive
Amid heavy deployment at the Singhu border area, two of the Indian Police Service (IPS) officers who led the force where the farmers' protest is ongoing against three farm laws, have tested positive for coronavirus.

According to the Delhi Police, both the officers are currently under home isolation.

This comes on the 16th day of the farmers' agitation against the Centre's farm laws.

Farmer leaders on Thursday said that they would intensify their agitation by blocking railways to put pressure on the government for the repeal of three farm laws after rejecting the Centre's proposals to make amendments on Wednesday.

Will Quit If No Minimum Price For Farmers: Haryana Deputy Chief Minister
Haryana's Deputy Chief Minister, Dushyant Chautala, a key BJP ally, on Friday promised to resign from his post if he is unable to secure the minimum support price (MSP) guarantee for farmers. The remark comes a day after the farmers protesting at the Delhi border rejected the Centre's written assurance that the support price system will not be scrapped and insisted on repeal of the three contentious agriculture laws.

"Our party's national president already made it clear that MSP must be ensured to farmers. The written proposals given by the Central government to the protesting farmers include a provision for MSPs. I will work to secure MSP for farmers as long as I am in power. I will resign from my post the day I am unable to fulfil the promise," Mr Chautala was quoted by news agency ANI as saying.

"Hijacked By Ultra-Left": New Spin As Farmers' Protests Escalate
As the ruling BJP commissioned a media blitz to tackle the stalemate with farmers protesting the new agricultural laws, the central government on Friday began pushing a narrative that the "ultra-left" has hijacked the demonstrations.

Through unofficial channels of communication referred to as "government sources" in media circles, functionaries in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's administration drew a parallel between the farmers' agitation and the Bhima-Koregaon violence near Pune in 2018.

Government sources blamed the "ultra-left" and "pro-Left Wing Extremist elements" - not different from those labelled as "Urban Naxals" by fanatical supporters of the BJP-led government on social media - for the farmers' movement taking a sinister turn. Read

PM Modi Spoke On Farm Laws 25 Times, 2.23 Crore Messages Sent: Sources
Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke more than 25 times on farm reforms and led the government's effort to reach out to farmers, top sources said today, challenging the perception that the new farm laws at the core of massive protests were enacted without enough consultation.

Sources said the government had reached out to farmers "before and after" enacting the agricultural laws. "PM spoke more than 25 times, more than 2.23 crore SMS were sent to farmers in October and 1,37,054 webinars were held that reached out to 92 lakhs farmers and the Agriculture Minister (Narendra Tomar) had multiple meetings," said sources. Read

"Don't Test Tolerance Of Annadata": Sharad Pawar Tells Centre On Farmer Protest
NCP chief Sharad Pawar today warned the central government against testing the patience of farmers protesting against the three new agricultural laws which, he said, had been hurried through Parliament. If not tackled in time, the senior leader said, the agitation could snowball as more people join it from various parts of the country.

"The farm laws were passed in hurry. There is a chance that this protest will spread across the nation. The solution to end this stalemate is to roll back the laws and have discussion with farmers," Mr Pawar told mediapersons in Mumbai. Read

Farmer Union Goes To Supreme Court, Wants "Arbitrary" Farm Laws Scrapped
The Bhartiya Kisan Union has filed a petition in the Supreme Court asking it to quash three agricultural laws passed by Parliament in September. Thousands of farmers have over the past few weeks been protesting against these laws, demanding that the government repeal them.

The Bhartiya Kisan Union's petition, filed by its president Bhanu Pratap Singh, claimed that the three laws will lead to commercialisation and will throw the farmers at the mercy of corporates. Citing the ongoing farmers' protest along the national capital's borders, it said a "rail roko" agitation, too, would begin soon. Read

100 Press Conferences, 700 Meets: BJP's Farm Laws Campaign Amid Pushback
With no end to the deadlock between protesting farmers and the government, the BJP has planned a massive campaign across the country to promote the controversial farm laws against which farmers have been protesting for the sixteenth straight day. As part of the big push from the ruling party over the next few days, 100 press conferences and 700 farmers 'meets have been planned in 700 districts, sources in the party said.

Cabinet ministers will also take part in the communication campaign, BJP sources said, adding that the government's measures to address the issues raised by farmers on the agricultural lawns will also be spelt out during the outreach.

The BJP will also address questioned and concerns people have about the farm laws, they said. Read

Have not received any reply from farmers on govt proposal, says Union Agriculture Minister

100 Press Conferences, 700 Meets: BJP's Farm Laws Campaign Amid Pushback
With no end to the deadlock between protesting farmers and the government, the BJP has planned a massive campaign across the country to promote the controversial farm laws against which farmers have been protesting for the sixteenth straight day. As part of the big push from the ruling party over the next few days, 100 press conferences and 700 farmers 'meets have been planned in 700 districts, sources in the party said. Read more

Farmers' protest: Several roads remain closed in Delhi

"Jan Andolan" If Farmers' Demands Not Met: Anna Hazare

2 IPS Officers Posted At Singhu Border Area Test Covid Positive