Social activist Anna Hazare on Friday confirmed he has cancelled the indefinite hunger strike he announced in protest against the farm laws earlier in the day, saying that the Centre has agreed to some of his demands.

The decision came after former Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis along with Minister of State for Agriculture Kailash Choudhary met Hazare at his hometown Ralegansiddhi and convinced him not to protest, PTI reported. 

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“The Union government has agreed to some of my demands and also announced setting up a committee to improve the lives of farmers. I have decided to suspend my proposed indefinite fast starting from Saturday,” Hazare said. 

Chaudhary said that a high-level committee, with some members recommended by Anna Hazare, will consider Hazare’s demands and make a proposal in next six months. 

“The Union government has agreed to some of my demands and also announced setting up a committee to improve the lives of farmers. I have decided to suspend my proposed indefinite fast starting from Saturday,” Hazare, 84, said. 

In a statement earlier today, Hazare announced he will launch an indefinite fast in protest against the farm laws, saying he had been demanding for reforms but the Centre was not taking the right decisions, PTI reported. 

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“The Centre has no sensitivity left for farmers, which is why I am starting my indefinite fast at my village from January 30,” the statement said. 

Hazare also urged his supporters to not flock to his native village in Ahmednagar district in view of the coronavirus pandemic. 

Hazare, who was at the forefront of the anti- corruption movement in 2011, had also recalled that when he went on a hunger strike at Delhi’s Ramlila Maidan, the then UPA government had called a special session of Parliament.

“Farmers are not getting adequate returns for their crops. I had told the government to implement the report of the Swaminathan Commission. It was delayed by the union government, so I decided to launch the protest from tomorrow,” Hazare told reporters at his village.

“But the government has appointed a high-level committee and assured me that farmers will get adequate returns for crops. Therefore, I have decided not to launch the protest,” he said.