Raj Thackeray urges PM Modi to intervene and talk to farmers: 'How long will this go on?'

Lashing out at the Centre over the ongoing farmers' protest, MNS chief Raj Thackeray on Saturday, urged PM Modi to intervene to get a breakthrough in the Centre-farmers' talks. Pointing out that PM Modi had said that he was a 'phone call away', he said that the Centre must think about the farmers sitting at Delhi's borders protesting. The farmers held a 3-hour 'Chakka Jam' peacefully across India in Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab, Jammu, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh etc, as farmers continue to protest for 73 days.

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Thackeray: 'PM must intervene' 

"In “Mann ki Baat”, PM Modi was talking about some phone call. If that is the case, then he should make that call and end the stir. This is no laughing matter. If the agriculture minister and others are failing, then PM should intervene. How long will this go on? How long will we let them sit in the cold?

Talking about external forces' involvement, he said, "If there is some other force behind it, then tackle those. But think about the normal farmers sitting there. This is a matter that states and Centre can sit together and resolve. The law is good, but there could be some shortcomings in it which need to be ironed out."

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The Chakka Jam

The umbrella body for the farmers' protest, Sanyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) called for a 3-hour 'Chakka Jam' from 12 noon to 3 PM on Saturday, across India except Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.  BKU spokesperson Rakesh Tikait said that sugar-cane farmers from UP and Uttarakhand were inconvenienced- opting to issue a memorandum to the state government detailing their demands, hence the two states were exempted. Tikait said that farmers will provide food and water to people stuck in traffic, while explaining to them 'what the Govt was doing to them'.

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Centre-Farmer talks stall

After 11 rounds of Centre-farmer talks, the two parties failed to reach a middle ground on Friday after a five-hour meeting with the associations refusing to agree to the Centre's proposal for suspending the implementation of the aforesaid legislation for one and a half years. Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar categorically said that the Union government is ready for another meeting only if the farmers want to discuss this proposal. The Supreme Court has stayed the three laws and constituted a 3-member panel to hold talks with farmers. While Centre has welcomed this move, farmers have refused to participate in it, insisting to talk only with the Centre.

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