RSS affiliate BKS organises ‘Kisan Garjana’ rally, calls for higher MSP, GST waiver

BKS also demands increase in ‘Kisan Samman Nidhi’ and ban on GM crops, says ‘non-violence is a choice and not compulsion’

Thousands of farmers, under the aegis of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh’s (RSS) farmers’ body, voiced their demands at the ‘Kisan Garjana’ rally at Delhi’s Ramlila ground on Monday. Asserting that “non-violence is a choice and not compulsion”, the office-bearers of Bharatiya Kisan Sangh (BKS) demanded that remunerative prices be fixed based on costs incurred by farmers, GST on agricultural produce be revoked, an increase in ‘Kisan Samman Nidhi’ and ban on GM crops.

Addressing a gathering of farmers from 560 districts of the country, the speakers at the rally said it is evident that governments, both at the States and Centre, are least concerned about farmers.

“Our farmers purchase everything that goes into farming on current MRP. Then why should the produce be sold at Minimum Support Price [MSP]? As MRP of things increases with demand and time, why not the MSP? Why the farmer has to sell his produce at lowest price? We at BKS demand to make it mandatory that MSP be fixed on basis of cost incurred by farmers,” said Dinesh Kulkarni, all-India organisation secretary, BKS.

M.M. Mishra, national secretary, said that a farmer pays GST when he purchases urea, pesticides, seeds and anything needed for farming. “Then he also pays GST while selling his produce, even when the produce is less. The government is making a fool out of the farmer. GST must go,” he said adding that farmers have arrived here on trains, tractors, and bi-cycles on their own, which shows that today’s farmers are aware of who is actually working for them.

The ‘Kisan Garjana’ also demanded an increase in ‘Kisan Samman Nidhi’ which “is merely ₹6,000 at present”.

“Can you imagine a farmer, who had taken loans for lakhs, and faced drought or floods and loss of crop, surviving with this menial money? This money must increased to a decent amount and must keep increasing with inflation,” demanded BKS all-India secretary Sai Reddy.