Farmers' body SKM on Thursday announced it will resume its agitation over its pending demands, including a legal guarantee to MSP and loan waiver, and submit a memorandum to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi.The Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella organisation of farm unions that led the 2020-21 farmers' protest, made the announcement a day after its general body met but indicated that unlike then, its agitation this time may not be a march to Delhi. Leaders of the outfit told a press conference that appointments will be sought between July 16 and July 18 to meet the prime minister, the leader of opposition and MPs of both Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha and give them the memorandum listing the farmers' demands.
The SKM also said memorials to honour those who died during the 2020-21 protest should be built at Delhi's Tikri and Singhu borders, where agitators camped for more than a year as part of their agitation that also pressed for compensation of farmers who died in the 2021 Lakhimpur Kheri violence in Uttar Pradesh. Asked if farmers will march to Delhi again, the SKM leaders said this time they are focusing on nationwide protests, particularly in assembly election-bound Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Jammu and Kashmir and Haryana. "The same method of protest does not have to be used every time.
We will hold protests across the country," All India Kisan Sabha's (AIKS) Hannan Mollah, who was a part of the general body meeting, sa.
