India’s farmers protest leaders on Monday sought to mount pressure on Prime Minister Narendra Modi to scrap three land reform laws and began another one-day hunger strike.
The leaders of the protests organized a 24-hour hunger strike on Monday.
The Modi government is calling on farmers to participate in more talks to end the crisis that has led to thousands of sit-ins on the outskirts of New Delhi for more than three weeks.
The protesters blocked roads linking the capital with the states of Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, causing disruption to public transport and access to supplies of vegetables and fruits.
“We will start a hunger strike for 24 hours in succession … to press to meet our demands regarding the abolition of three agricultural laws,” said Yogendra Yadav, a prominent leader of the protests.
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Protest leaders called on their supporters to miss a meal on December 23 in solidarity with their action, and parliament in September passed the laws without much debate.
Farmers fear that the changes will mean an end to state purchases of basic crops, which will put them at the mercy of large corporations.
Modi defended the laws, saying they would help farmers increase income and encourage more private investment.
The leaders of the protests said that more than 30 protesters had died in the past weeks, and the main reason was the freezing cold, as they slept in the open in temperatures reaching four degrees Celsius.
