At Ludhiana meet, SKM forms nine-member panel for draft fresh charter of demands
SKM urges people not to attend Shah's Moga rally
The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) on Friday formed a nine-member committee to draft a fresh charter of demands, which will serve as the basis for future struggles against the state government.
At a state-level meeting at Shaheed Karnail Singh Isru Bhavan here, the SKM reviewed its recent activities, including sit-ins near Deputy Commissioner Offices across the state on January 16 and tractor marches on January 26.
The meeting was chaired by Balkaran Singh Brar, Harjinder Singh Tanda and Gurvinder Singh Dhillon.
The SKM also urged the people not to attend Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) upcoming rally in Moga on February 22. Union Home Minister Amit Shah is slated to be present at the meeting.
The members termed the recent protests over privatisation and “anti-farmer” policies as “highly successful”. The leaders expressed gratitude to farmers, workers, employees and student organisations for their participation.
At the meeting, the meeting resolved to hold a convention of farmers, workers and employees’ unions on February 5 at Kisan Bhavan, Chandigarh. The convention will strategise actions against privatisation and to press for Punjab-specific demands. The SKM pledged full participation in the nationwide strike on February 12.
The SKM announced that if the Electricity Amendment Bill was to be introduced in the Parliament, a “black day” will be observed across the country. In Punjab, trains will be blocked for three hours and commuters will be allowed to pass toll plazas for free. The farmers’ body opposed the Chief Minister’s recent remarks on river waters, insisting that the issue must be resolved on the basis of the riparian principle and constitutional provisions, not as a “gift.”
The members resolved that talks with the Centre will only be held after a formal invitation.
On flood relief, the body criticised the state government for “inadequate compensation”, and demanded Rs 70,000 per acre for affected farmers, including owners of unregistered land.
