Voice of dissent can't be muzzled indefinitely, says Punjab CM

Chandigarh, Nov 27 (IANS) Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Friday once again reiterated that voices of the protesting farmers "cannot be muzzled indefinitely" and the "Centre should initiate talks"."The voice of farmers cannot be muzzled indefinitely. Centre should immediately initiate talks with Kisan Union leaders to defuse the tense situation at the Delhi borders."Why wait till December 3 when the situation is getting out of hand now?" a tweet by Chief Minister's Media Advisor Raveen Thukral quoting Amarinder Singh said.In a series of tweets, the Chief Minister said the central government "needs to show statesmanship and accept the farmers' demand for assured MSP (minimum support price), which is the basic right of every farmer"."If they can give verbal assurance I fail to understand why they can't make it a legal obligation of the Government of India.""Those claiming it's the Congress that's instigating the farmers are blind not to see the lakhs of farmers trying to enter Delhi from across the country. It's a fight for their lives and livelihoods and they don't need any backing or provocation," the Chief Minister added.
--IANS vg/in