NEW DELHI, Dec 14: Amidst farmers’ agitation demanding scrapping of the three contentious farm laws, the social activist Anna Hazare, whose agitation against alleged corruption in high offices had virtually paralysed the then Manmohan Singh government at the centre, has threatened to launch another hunger strike if the centre failed to fulfill his demands including implementation of the M S Swaminathan commission’s recommendations.
Hazare wrote a letter to the union agriculture minister Narendra Singh Tomar warning “resumption of a hunger strike” if his demands were not met. Hazare’s other demand include granting autonomy to the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP).
The anti-graft activist had sat on fast in his native village Ralegaon Siddhi in Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra in February, 2019.
He called off the fast on February 5, 2019 after receiving a written assurance from then Union agriculture minister Radha Mohan Singh that the Centre would form a high- powered committee to discuss the suggestions made by the Swaminathan Commission and other agriculture-related demands.
In his letter to Tomar Hazare has enclosed the letter of Radha Mohan Singh in which the centre then had given the assurance that the high-powered committee will prepare its report and submit it by October 30, 2019.
“The Centre had assured that it would take appropriate action on the demands on the basis of the committee’s report. Since nothing has been done till date to that effect, I am thinking to resume the hunger strike which was called off on February 5, 2019,” Hazare wrote in his letter to Tomar.
The octogenarian said the Centre would be soon apprised of the date and venue of the fast.
Hazare observed a fast on December 8 in support of the Bharat Bandh called by farmer organisations demanding a repeal of the Centre’s three farm laws.
He had warned of an agitation if the government fails to grant autonomy to the CACP and implement recommendations of the Swaminathan commission.
(Manas Dasgupta)