Farmers' strike: Shiv Sena says this is just a beginning

Mumbai: The ongoing agitation of farmers in Maharashtra is only a beginning, said the Shiv Sena, BJP's ally in the state as well as at the Centre, on Monday.

"The ongoing strike by farmers has received a huge response from all quarters of society. This should serve as a lesson to politicians. Farmers have hit the streets. Their agitation should not be seen as violence but a fire that has lit in their stomachs due to hunger," Sena MP Sanjay Raut said here in a statement issued on behalf of the party chief Uddhav Thackeray.

Sena, though a partner in the BJP-led government, has extended support to the farmers who launched the agitation for demands such as loan waiver on June 1.

Farmers from various parts of the state have come together in this agitation, Raut noted.

"This unity will result in a complete loan waiver for farmers and good prices for agricultural produce. Uddhav Thackeray has extended his complete support to this strike and has made it clear he stands firmly behind farmers," he said.

"This is just a start of the fight (for farmers' rights)," Raut said.