India / Don't lose hope, Cong will fight with you: Priyanka to farmers

Meerut: Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra today told the farmers to not loose hopes over the scrapping of the farm laws while addressing Kisan Mahapanchayat in Meerut. The Congress leader focused and highlighted the issues being faced by the farmers since the innception of the BJP government's farm laws.

Urging the farmers at the Kisan Mahapanchayat she said, "Even if it takes 100 weeks or 100 months, we (Congress) will continue this fight with you till this government takes back its black laws.

On March 6, Priyanka Gandhi had chaired the meeting of UP Congress MLAs in Delhi and discussed the strategy to be adopted to take on the central government on farmer's issues. The Congress Party is organising Kisan Panchayats in 28 districts of Western Uttar Pradesh to raise a voice against the farm laws and to support farmers' demand to repeal them.

Uttar Pradesh Congress had launched the 'Jai Jawan Jai Kisan' programme in the region on February 10 from Saharanpur through a Kisan Panchayat which was addressed by Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.

According to sources with this Kisan Mahapanchayat, the party will conclude the Program in Western UP and the Next Phase will be launched in Eastern UP.

Since then, senior leaders are addressing Kisan Panchayats from district to tehsil level but Kisan Panchayats addressed by Congress General Secretary in-charge of the state Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has been planned aiming at gaining political ground.

Thousands of farmers have been protesting since late November at the Delhi borders with Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, demanding a rollback of the Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020; Farmers' (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020; and Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.

The protesting farmers have expressed apprehension that these laws would pave the way for the dismantling of the minimum support price (MSP) system, leaving them at the "mercy" of big corporations.