Farmers to hold ‘Kisaan Parade’ in Delhi on Republic Day

Farmers protesting the new agricultural laws near Delhi's borders threatened to hold a tractor rally - "Kisaan Parade" - in the national capital on Republic Day, January 26, ahead of the scheduled talks with Centre on January 4. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will be in the national capital on January 26. He will be the chief guest at the Republic Day parade which will be held at Rajpath.

Addressing a press conference, farmer leader Darshan Pal Singh said their proposed parade will be called "Kisan Parade" and it will be held after the Republic Day parade.

"We are going to hold discussions (with the government) on January 4 (Monday). The Supreme Court is going to hear the matter on January 5. If demands are not met, we will hold a tractor march on Kundli-Manesar-Palwal Expressway in Haryana on January 6. We will protest for 15 days. On January 23, On Subhash Chandra Bose's birthday, we will hold a protest outside the Governor's House," Darshan Pal Singh said.

"On January 26, we will hold a massive rally in Delhi with tricolours on tractors. We give a call for countrywide protests at all headquarters (of the unions)," he added. The farmers' parade will take place after the annual Republic Day parade, the union said in a press statement.

After the sixth round of formal negotiations on Wednesday, the government and farm unions reached some common ground to resolve protesting farmers' concerns over rise in power tariff and penalties for stubble burning, but the two sides remained deadlocked over the main contentious issues of the repeal of three farm laws and a legal guarantee for minimum support price (MSP).

Thousands of farmers have been protesting since November-end on highways near Delhi against the laws, which the centre says are important for reforms in the agriculture sector. Farmers fear the laws will deprive them of guaranteed minimum earnings and leave them open to exploitation by corporates.

Earlier, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi launched a sharp attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the government over the farmer protests. Rahul Gandhi, who led a delegation of Congress workers to President Ram Nath Kovind to seek his intervention in ending the massive protests near Delhi over farm laws, said that there was "no democracy" in India.

After meeting President Kovind, Rahul Gandhi said, "The Opposition stands with farmers. The protesting farmers will not stop the protest till the laws are repealed.”