Kolkata: Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader Rakesh Tikait met West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday seeking her support to the farmers' ongoing protest against the Centre's controversial farm laws and other issues related to agriculture.


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During the meeting, the West Bengal Chief Minister assured Tikait of full support to the farmers' ongoing protests against the Centre’s three controversial farm laws.


 



 


Mamata Banerjee said that her party Trinamool Congress fully stands with the farmers’ movement until all their demands are met. “We have passed the resolution against the farm laws. We are with farmers, with their movement until their demands are met,” Mamata Banerjee said.


The TMC supremo further said that industries are suffering and GST is being levied on medicines. “For the last 7 months, they (Central government) didn't bother to speak to farmers. I demand that all three farm laws are withdrawn,” Banerjee said.


 



 


In his turn, the BKU leader said, ''The Chief Minister assured us that she will continue to support the farmers' movement. We thank her for this assurance. West Bengal should work as a model state and farmers should be given more benefits.”


The Bharatiya Kisan Union leader further said that the protest will continue and urged the CM to focus on national issues which need attention.


Tikait had visited Bengal before the state assembly elections and campaigned for TMC. He visited hotly contested Nandigram, where Banerjee faced her protege-turned-adversary BJP’s Suvendu Adhikari and asked people to vote against BJP. 


Tikait and other farmer leaders have been agitating on Delhi's borders for more than a year against three farm laws passed by the Parliament which they feel will commercialise agriculture without adequate protection to small farmers from exploitation by large retail chains and industry.


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