New Delhi, (Asian independent) The All India Kisan Mahasabha (AIKS) on Sunday termed Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar’s reported statement about bringing back three farm laws that were recently repealed as a challenge against the people of India, including the peasants and workers, “on behalf of the corporate forces”.
“This challenge is on behalf of the corporate forces, both Indian and foreign, and the global imperialist trinity of World Bank, International Monetary Fund and World Trade Organisation (WB-IMF-WTO),” said a statement from the AIKS, one of the prominent organisations of the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) that had spearheaded an almost year long agitation demanding the repeal of the three contentious farm laws. Those were repealed by the Parliament earlier this month.
Tomar’s remark at Nagpur on Friday that farm laws would be brought back — “We had brought in the farm laws, but a few people were not happy with it… We moved a step back and we will move forward (on farm laws). Farmers are the backbone of India” — had drawn criticism from opposition, prompting Tomar to clarify on Sunday that the government has no proposal or plan to bring back farm reform laws.
The AIKS, however, said: “The peasantry and the working class of India are prepared to accept this challenge. PM Modi represents a ‘government of the corporate, by the corporate and for the corporate’. There will be mightier struggles across the country in the near future and that will eventually eradicate the present corporate rule under the Modi government.”
Reminding that the SKM has not withdrawn but suspended the struggle in the context of the repeal of the three farm acts, the statement said: “The next SKM meeting on January 15 will further discuss and decide on the continuation of the struggle on the remaining demands including enacting law for legally guaranteed minimum support price, withdrawal of the Electricity (Privatisation) Bill and dismissal and arrest of the Minister of State for Home Affairs Ajay Kumar Teni.”
