AAP delegation reaches Gandhinagar to meet Gujarat CM over farmers’ demands

An Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) delegation reached Swarnim Sankul in Gandhinagar on Tuesday to meet the Gujarat Chief Minister regarding farmers’ demands. The delegation submitted a memorandum signed by farmers and outlining 11 demands related to agricultural and allied issues.

According to the party, AAP has organised 8 to 9 ‘Kisan Mahapanchayats’ across Gujarat and held ‘Kisan Nyay Panchayats’ in more than 8,000 villages across North Gujarat, Central Gujarat and Saurashtra. A signature campaign was also conducted in villages and talukas across the state in support of farmers’ demands, during which more than 80,000 farmers signed the memorandum.

The delegation was led by Gujarat State President Isudan Gadhvi and included AAP leaders and MLAs Gopal Italia and Chaitar Vasava, State Organisation General Secretary Manoj Sorathiya and other senior leaders.

Speaking to the media, Isudan Gadhvi said that the party has been raising farmers’ issues through various ‘Jansabhas’ and ‘Kisan Panchayats’ for several days. He said that after AAP announced a Kisan Helpline number, complaints were received from farmers from more than 400 APMCs. He added that issues ranging from the “price-cutting practice” to other concerns were highlighted through Kisan Mahapanchayats across the state and ‘Kisan Nyay Panchayats’ in 8,000 villages. Gadhvi said that through the signature campaign, over 80,000 farmers expressed support for the party’s 11-point charter of demands.

He said that the delegation, which includes Gopal Italia, Chaitar Vasava, Manoj Sorathiya and other leaders, will apprise the Chief Minister of the 11 demands along with the signed memorandum submitted by farmers.

Detailing the demands, Gadhvi said the first demand is the immediate abolition of the “price-cutting practice” in all markets, with strict imprisonment for those involved. The second demand is that farmers should not be forced to transport their produce to godowns or factories instead of APMC markets.

The third demand seeks compensation of ₹50,000 per hectare for farmers and sharecroppers whose crops were damaged by unseasonal rains, on the lines of the Punjab government, with payment within one month.

The fourth demand calls for dairy farmers to receive the price difference from all dairy unions directly into their bank accounts in a timely manner. The fifth demand is for 12 hours of free electricity daily for farmers. The sixth demand seeks withdrawal of police cases filed against farmers during the Haddad incident and the Sabar Dairy agitation, along with the immediate release of jailed farmers.

The seventh demand is that the government should procure all crops at MSP (Minimum Support Price). The eighth demand seeks adequate and timely availability of fertilisers. The ninth demand calls for clearance of pending payments to sugarcane farmers by sugar mills and the reopening of closed sugar mills. The tenth demand is that cotton procurement by the CCI should begin from October 1 instead of December. The eleventh demand relates to compensation for farmers affected by the installation of high-tension power lines across Gujarat, which the party said remains inadequate.

Gadhvi said the issues would be formally presented to the Chief Minister and expressed confidence that positive decisions would be taken. He also said that if the demands are not accepted in the coming days, the Aam Aadmi Party will launch a mass public agitation.