New Delhi: Farmer leaders, who on Wednesday rejected the government’s proposal to amend three controversial farm laws, have announced that they would intensify their agitation by blocking the Jaipur-Delhi and the Delhi-Agra expressways by Saturday, and escalating it to a nationwide protest on 14 December.
The plans involve closure of the Delhi-Jaipur Highway, boycott of Reliance malls and capture of toll plazas. By 14 December, there will be a full-scale protest across the country, they said.
The decision was taken at a meeting after the Centre sent a written proposal laying out a series of amendments, an idea turned down by farmers who demand scrapping of the laws.
Farmers have been demonstrating since late last month over reforms enacted in September that loosened rules around the sale, pricing and storage of farm produce that had protected farmers from an unfettered free market for decades.
Announcing the plans of the farmer unions after a meeting this evening, farmer leader Dr Darshanpal said, “We will block the Delhi-Jaipur highway by 12 December. We will sit on dharna at all the toll plazas of country on 12 December. We have called for a nationwide protest on 14th. We have asked the people to protest against every MP and MLA of the BJP”.