A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi remarked that the proposal to halt the farm laws for 18 months was still on the table, farmer leader Rakesh Tikait on Sunday, 31 January, said that farmer groups would hold discussion on the issue, while thanking the Prime Minister his initiative, reported news agency ANI.
However, the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader, whose teary speech on the evening of 28 January gave the farmers agitation a fresh lease of life, demanded that “his people” should be released.
“There won’t be any agreement under pressure. We will hold discussions on the issue, Prime minister is ours also, we are thankful for his initiative, we will respect it. We want our people to be released.”Rakesh Tikait, Leader, BKU
Under pressure from the Ghaziabad administration to vacate the protest side at UP gate, and faced by thinning crowds at the venue, Rakesh Tikait had broken down on 28 January and said he would rather die than abandon the agitation.
A last-minute emotional appeal on TV news saved the day for the protest as thousands started pouring in, after being moved by Tikait’s tears.
What did PM Modi Say?
Tikait’s kind words for the prime minister come after the latter, in an all party meeting on Saturday, 30 January, said that the government is approaching the farmers issue with “an open mind” and that the Centre is just a call away.
The details of PM Modi’s remarks were tweeted out by Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi, who also shed light on the PM’s comments on unrest that had broken out at the heart of Delhi on 26 January, after the tractors rally planned by farmers violated its sanctioned routes, spilling into the capital.
“Referring to the references about the unfortunate incident on the 26th, PM @narendramodi said that the law will take its own course,” Joshi Tweeted.
Naresh Echoes Rakesh
Reiterating his brother Rakesh, Naresh Tikait said that his group would “honour and respect the dignity of prime minister. Farmers don't want that the government or Parliament bows down to them,” according to news agency PTI.
He also added that talks would be held in such a way that the self-respect of the farmer is protected. Like his brother, Naresh, too, demanded that their men be released.
The Delhi Police has registered nearly 40 cases and made over 80 arrests in connection with the violence and vandalism.
(With inputs from ANI & PTI)
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