Farmers from Karnataka, Maharashtra join protestors at Haryana border

Groups of farmers from Karnataka and Maharashtra joined the ongoing agitation on the Haryana-Rajasthan border on Sunday

Groups of farmers from Karnataka and Maharashtra joined the ongoing agitation on the Haryana-Rajasthan border on Sunday. Farmers said that the growing numbers would help to strengthen the agitation ahead of January 26, when farmers plan to proceed towards Delhi.

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Farmers from Rajasthan, Haryana, Maharashtra and other states have been campaigning at Jaisinghpur Khera, located near Shahjahanpur in Alwar district since December 13. Farmers have been protesting against the three new farm laws, which were passed by the Centre in September last year. They fear that the new laws will leave them at the mercy of big corporations and end the minimum support price (MSP) for important crops.

Sanjay Madhav, state convener of the All India Kisan Sangharsh Coordination Committee in Rajasthan, said that nearly 300 farmers from Karnataka and 250 from Maharashtra had reached the protest site on Sunday. He said that the Sanyukt Kisan Morcha was of the view that the government was not serious in its approach towards the ongoing talks. As such, the number of protesting farmers would continue to rise until the laws are rolled back, said Madhav.

He added that women farmers had also joined the protest in large numbers ahead of the women farmers’ day celebrations scheduled for Monday. “Right now, there are more women farmers than men here. Women farmers are an equal part of the movement and we plan to celebrate their contributions tomorrow,” said Madhav.

Women farmers at the site also said that they were not happy with the Supreme Court’s stance that women, children and elders should avoid protests. Sohni Singh Punia, a 58-year-old farmer from Sikar in Rajasthan, said that women were an integral part of the farmers’ agitation and will not back down until the three laws are rolled back. “People say that women should not protest. It’s unfair. No one can stop us from protesting, it’s our democratic right. We will sit here till the three laws are taken back,” said Punia. She said that women farmers from different states had joined the ongoing agitation to strengthen the movement.