Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot calls upon Centre to resolve farmers’ grievances at dharna held in Jaipur

Congress workers in Rajasthan staged dharnas across the state on Sunday to protest against the Central’s farm laws.

A dharna was held in the state capital Jaipur at Shaheed Smarak by a large number of party workers despite the inclement weather, with Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and former deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot sharing the same platform to address party workers against the farm laws.

More than 80 of the party’s MPs, MLAs and former MLAs were present at the dharna, besides a large number of municipal councillors, panchayat members, pradhans and sarpanchs.

Addressing the party workers, Gehlot said that the insensitive Modi government has not cared to listen to the farmers who are staging protests in the midst of a bitter winter.

He said the protesting farmers are the voice of farmers from all over the country and the Union government should hold talks in a positive atmosphere and find a solution.

The dharna was also addressed by president of the party’s state unit Govind Singh Dotasara. He said the Congress had opposed the farm Bills in Parliament because it was against the interest of the farmers, and the Congress government in the state had passed Bills in the Vidhan Sabha to counter the Central laws.

Sachin Pilot said that ever since the freedom movement, farmers had sided with the Congress because it always took up their issues. He said the Congress has produced a number of kisan leaders, but the BJP could not produce even one leader from the farming community.

He added that the Union government was showing its arrogance by not finding a solution to the problems of the farmers. He called the farmers’ agitation a historic protest in the history of free India.

On Tuesday, Rajasthan government will also launch a week long campaign ‘Kisan Bachao-Desh Bachao’ under which ministers, party workers and public representatives will visit villages in the state in support of the demand for a rollback of the three laws.

The farmers’ leaders agitating in Delhi and the Centre will hold the seventh round of discussion on January 4. The leaders of the farmers’ unions have warned intensification of the agitation at Delhi’s borders if their demands are not met.