Farmers to protest near Parliament amid Monsoon Session

Farmers agitating against the three farm laws will hold a 'Kisan Parliament' every day at Jantar Mantar, during the ongoing Monsoon Session of Parliament, beginning Thursday.

A group of 200 farmers will hold “peaceful demonstrations” at Jantar Mantar demanding scrapping of the agri laws and no protester will go to Parliament where the Monsoon Session is underway.

The Monsoon Session of Parliament started on Monday and is scheduled to conclude on August 13.

Read more: Farmers set for fresh showdown with Centre during Monsoon Session

“We informed the police that every day 200 farmers will go to Jantar Mantar from the Singhu border in buses during the Monsoon Session. It will be a peaceful demonstration and protesters will have identification badges,” Rashtriya Kisan Mazdoor Mahasangh President Shiv Kumar Kakka said.

The Delhi Police granted permission for the protests after the Samyukta Kisan Morcha, the umbrella body spearheading the seven-month protests at Delhi’s borders, assured that the farmers will not march towards parliament.

The government has ruled out repeal of the three farm laws – a key demand of the farmers – and asked them to join talks if they want to suggest any amendments.

The agitating farmers and the government had held 11 rounds of talks in December-January but failed to reach any agreement. The government had offered to suspend the three farm laws for 18 months and continue talks with the protestors, but the proposal was shot down by the farmers’ unions.

The violence during the tractor rally carried out by the farmers on Republic Day and the storming of the Red Fort by protestors marred the agitation that has been continuing on the Tikri, Singhu and Ghazipur borders of the capital since November 26 last year.

However, over the past few months the number or protestors has thinned at the three sites as farmers were busy with the sowing for kharif crops.