A 12-member delegation of farm union leaders from various states met with Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, at the Parliament House on Wednesday. The delegation sought a legal guarantee for the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for their crops, a long-standing demand.
Gandhi assured the farm leaders, who represented Sayunkt Kisan Morcha (non-political) and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha, that the INDIA bloc would put pressure on the government to secure this legal guarantee. He stated that discussions would be held with INDIA bloc leaders and all possibilities, including moving a Private Member’s Bill, would be explored.
“We will have a discussion with INDIA bloc leaders and will put pressure on the government to ensure that the farmers get a legal guarantee for MSP,” Gandhi told reporters after the meeting. “In our manifesto, MSP with a legal guarantee was promised. We have done an assessment and that can be done.”
The delegation, which included farmers from Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka, voiced their concerns during the nearly 45-minute meeting. They reminded Gandhi of his election promise to provide a legal guarantee for MSP. Jagjit Singh Dallewal, coordinator of SKM (non-political), emphasized the importance of fulfilling this promise and the expectation that Opposition MPs would raise the issue in Parliament.
“At the meeting, we reminded Rahul Gandhi of his election promise. Before the Lok Sabha elections, his party manifesto had promised a legal guarantee for MSP on crops. The people have given them the role of a strong Opposition. We told him that we expect him and other Opposition MPs to raise farmers’ issues in Parliament,” Dallewal said.
Gandhi had invited the farm leaders for a meeting in his office in Parliament, though there were initial reports that the farmers were denied entry. Congress General Secretary (Organisation) K C Venugopal highlighted the farmers’ struggles, stating on X, “Snubbed by the government, beaten with sticks and welcomed with bullets, these farmers have lost all expectations from the government…”
The INDIA bloc’s commitment to addressing farmers’ issues and the assurance from Rahul Gandhi signals a continued focus on agricultural reforms and support for farmers’
