The Bharatiya Janata Party and alliance partner Jannayak Janata Party in Haryana have begun negotiations with farmers’ bodies to address their demands after hundreds of them protested Narendra Modi government’s farm ordinances over the last few days, NDTV reported on Saturday.

Three ordinances are the focal point of their protests – The Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Ordinance, the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Ordinance, and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Ordinance, 2020. The biggest demand of the farmers is introduction of a law to assure them of a minimum support price. They also fear that an amendment in the Essential Commodities Act, 1955, will lead to black marketing.

The state administration has been criticised for police action against the protestors. On Friday, the Haryana Police registered against cases against 300 farmers, including Bharatiya Kisan Union chief Gurnam Singh Charuni, for destroying public property and violating curbs on gatherings in view of the coronavirus pandemic.

On Thursday, farmer groups in Haryana protested against the ordinances at the Pipli wholesale grain market place near Kurukshetra district. They also blocked the Delhi-Chandigarh national highway for a few hours when the police did not allow them to move to the protest site. The police had also used batons to disperse the farmers after they forcibly tried to move towards a rally ground by breaking barricades.

Charuni has warned the authorities of intensified protests if their demands are not met. “If the farmers’ demands are not met by September 14, there would be protests at all district headquarters, and on September 20, all roads in the state will be blocked,” he said.

Meanwhile, BJP’s Haryana unit President OP Dhankar formed a three-member committee, comprised of the party’s MPs Dharambir Singh, Brijendra Singh, and Kurukshetra MP Naib Saini to begin a dialogue with the farmers. Two meetings have been scheduled for Saturday, one in Rohtak and another in Karnal. On Sunday, a third meeting has been scheduled in Panchkula.

The protests, that largely seem restricted to Haryana and Punjab, may gain speed after September 14 when the Parliament resumes for the Monsoon session, according to The Indian Express.

BJP MPs criticise Haryana government after police baton-charge farmers

BJP MPs Dharambir Singh and Brijendra Singh condemned the way the farmers’ protests at Kurukshetra was handled and said the incident “painful”. The two politicians said that farmers had equal rights to raise their concerns.

JJP leader Digvijay Chautala also condemned the use of force against the protesting farmers. “We consider the pain of farmers as of ours,” he tweeted. [Thursday’s] Today’s episode should be inquired. It’s a painful incident which should not have occurred.”

Indian National Lok Dal leader Abhay Singh Chautala described the lathicharge as “unfortunate” and said “instead of talking to farmers, the BJP government was raining lathis on peasants”.

The Congress on Saturday said that the central government’s ordinances would subjugate the cultivators “at the altar of a handful of crony capitalists” and it would be “death knell” for agriculture.

The party claimed that it will oppose the ordinances both inside and outside the Parliament and approach like-minded parties. Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala expressed solidarity with the demonstrators and said there was no provision in the ordinances to protect the rights of farm tenants or workers, reported PTI. “When the mandi system ends, the farmer will be dependent only on contract farming and the big companies will set the price for his crop,” he said. “What is this if not a new zamindari system?”