Farmers were demanding implementation of Swaminathan Committee recommendations 

AgriNation News Network

Jaipur | 22 Feb 2018

In an attempt to stop the farmers protest around the legislative assembly on February 22, the BJP government in Rajasthan arrested the farmer leaders up to the tehsil level on Thursday. Farmers were coming to Jaipur under the All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) leadership to demand implementation of the Swaminathan Committee recommendations and loan waiver and protest against the Vasundhara Raje government for refusing to implement an 11-point demand it had accepted in September 2017.

Protesting against the government’s act, various farmers’ organisations protested at every block today and also burnt the effigy of Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje.

It had arrested farmer leaders Amra Ram, Hetram Beniwal, Seopat Meghwal and other leaders two days ago while they were marching towards Jaipur.

AIKS said, “The discredited BJP Government is only exposing its fear of the Kisan mobilisation by this act. Democratic protests cannot be stifled by repression”.

Condemning the sudden crackdown on farmers, AIKSCC (All India Kisan Sangharsh Coordination Committee), a body of 194 farmer groups said, “In order to pre-empt a farmers’ protest around the legislative assembly February 22, the Rajasthan government cracked down on farmer leaders”.

The CPI(M) also criticised the Rajasthan government for arresting farmer leaders belonging to the All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS), who were protesting against the BJP-led regime in the state and demanded the immediate release of all those arrested, withdrawal of the “false” cases against them and acceptance of the legitimate demands of the AIKS.