RSS-affiliated BKS wants Centre to ensure MSP

New Delhi: Breaking its silence on the ongoing farmers' agitation, the RSS-affiliated Bharatiya Kisan Sangh (BKS) on Friday said it was in favour of ensuring Minimum Support Price (MSP) in government and private-run mandis, and making procurement of food grains below MSP a criminal offence.

A major reason why farmer unions on protest at Delhi borders have been demanding a complete rollback of the new laws is that these don't carry a provision to ensure that private players don't buy farmers' produce below the MSP, according to News18 report.

The BKS also demanded that the Modi government set up special agri courts to hear matters of dispute between farmers and private buyers instead of the current provision which stipulates that such disputes be directed to the local SDM.

Veteran actor Dharmendra urged the central government to find a solution to farmers' protests over the farm laws, a day after he deleted a similar post on Twitter.

On Thursday, the 84-year-old actor had urged the government to resolve the protests soon, citing the growing number of coronavirus cases in Delhi. "I request the government... please quickly find a solution the farmers' problems... the number of corona cases are on a rise in Delhi... it is painful," Dharmendra had written in a post. However, the veteran actor soon deleted the post, without any explanation.

A user claimed that he must have deleted the post on the insistence of his son, actor and BJP MP from Gurdaspur Sunny Deol, Dharmendra replied, "I won't say anything about your mentality."

Punjabi singer-actor Harbhajan Mann announced that he will not accept the state government's 'Shiromani Punjabi' Award, expressing solidarity with farmers protesting against the new central farm laws.

"Though I'm grateful to be selected, I humbly cannot accept the Shiromni Gayak award from the Department of Language. People's love is the biggest award of my career, & all attention & efforts right now from us all must be dedicated to the peaceful farmers' protest (sic)," Mann said on Twitter.

Mann, along with many Punjabi singers and artists, has been supporting the farmers' agitation for the last several months. The singer-actor had also attended the farmers protest at the Delhi borders. "You had to be there to experience their energy, fervour & optimism. Former national boxing coach Gurbax Singh Sandhu, during whose tenure India secured its maiden Olympic medal in the sport, said he will return his Dronacharya award if demands of the farmers protesting against new agriculture laws are not addressed.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee spoke to various farmers' groups protesting at Delhi's Singhu border against the Centre's agriculture reform laws and assured them that the TMC stands by them, party leader Derek O'Brien said.

Brien, who spent almost four hours with the agitating farmers, facilitated the interactions over the phone.

Enacted in September, the three farm laws are anticipated to bring "reforms" in the agriculture sector by removing middlemen and allowing farmers to sell their produce anywhere in the country. Farmers worry these laws will eliminate the safety net of the Minimum Support Price (MSP) and do away with mandis that ensure earning. But the government says the MSP system will continue and the new laws will give farmers more options to sell their crop.