BJP MLA Kanubhai Kalsariya leader of thousands of local farmers of Saurashtra’s Mahuva area protesting against Nirma’s Cement plant there today met Chief Minister Narendra Modi in Gandhinagar.

According to sources, the Chief Minister said him: “May God give you good sense”. Modi, according to Dr Kalsaria, assured full security to him and his family, but was non-committal on the issue of land acquisition. Dr Kalsaria was provided round-the-clock armed security after the attack on him a week ago. The Chief Minister directed Kalsariya to go to the minister of concern department, in this case Saurabh Dalal, a minister of state for industry. Kalsariya then met minister Saurabh Dalal along with a group of farmers and submitted a memorandum demanding cancellation of land allotment to Nirma in Mahuva. A total of 25 farmers accompanied by 92-year-old Gandhian Chunibhai Vaidya, who were initially detained by the police outside the state Secretariat and prevented from marching to the Assembly, were later escorted to the office of state Industry Minister Saurabh Patel in groups of five. Gujarat BJP President and MLA R.C.Faldu, Ministers Amit Shah, Vasanbhai Ahir tried to convince Dr. Kalsariya to drop his agitation. However Dr. Kalsariya clarified that he was not against BJP or the state government. It should be mentioned here that Kalsariya wanted to meet the Chief Minister with 25 farmers but the Chief Minister allowed only Kalsariya and his wife inside his office.

Earlier tears rolling down his cheeks, Kalsariya tried to raise Nirma cement plant issue in ongoing budget session of Gujarat assembly but the speaker didn’t allow him because he had not sought any permission for that in prior. According to assembly rules, an MLA who wants to raise any issue in Zero hour has to first get permission of assembly speaker and concern minister of related department. Kalsariya continued to raise his voice against Nirma plant on the floor of assembly even after speaker ordered him to stop. When Kalsariya rushed to the well area of the assembly floor, the speaker ordered Sargent to take him out. The Congress MLAs supported Kalsariya’a protests and demanded to let him speak. All BJP MLAs were silent.

In his informal interaction with curious reporters at Gandhinagar, Dr. Kalsariya said there are four water stoppages situated on the land that the government has allotted to Nirma company. If everything goes as per Nirma’s plan, at least 27000 bigha land would be affected and five thousand farmers would be affected adversely. Dr Kalsaria said that about 5,000 farmers with 30,000 of their family members will lose their livelihood if the 222 hectares of land, including water bodies, is allotted to the cement plant which will create only 418 jobs. A total of 268 hectares is being allotted to the cement company.

According to sources, Dr. Kalsariya has given 15-day time to government to resolve the issue. Kalsariya would go on fast unto death if government continues its stand on Nirma plant.

Kalsariya was detained in Ahmedabad when attempting to led a rally of farmers. He then called the minister of state for Home and asked him that as an MLA he wanted to attend the budget speech, however the minister didn’t offer any help. Kalsariya couldn’t attend the budget speech thus and spent his afternoon in Ahmedabad’s Police bhavan. Today when he entered the assembly complex, he was a man-of-the-day who attracted everybody’s attention.

When questioned by media persons, Dr Kalsaria said that after his detention outside the Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad on Thursday, he had called Assembly Speaker Ashok Bhatt, Minister of State for Home Amit Shah and even DGP S S Khandwawala to get him released to enable him to attend the Assembly Session.

“Farmers could have been detained, but, as an MLA I could have been released for attending the Assembly session.” said Dr Kalsaria. “But no one including the Assembly speaker helped me,” he added.

Asked if he would seek time to raise the issue in the House as per the procedures, Dr Kalsaria said: “I am sure that I will not get the permission to raise the issue in the House. I am not bothered about my security as it is in the hands of God but the real question is the farmers’ interest.”

He added: “The government is not ready to hold discussions on the issue…the state government appears to be completely on the side of the cement company, ignoring the interest of 5,000 farmers and the 30,000 people dependent on them.”

Asked about his future course of action if the state government did not reverse its decision on the land issue, the BJP legislator said, “I will start a non-violent agitation and continue it till the desired goal is achieved.”