Farmers Movement Archive

Baghpat farmer dies at Ghazipur border: BKU

The cold wave claimed a life at the Ghazipur border on Friday morning. A farmer allegedly protesting against the farm laws at the Ghazipur border passed away because of cardiac arrest. In his late 50s, the deceased has been identified as Galtan Singh of Bhagwanpur Nagla in Baghpat district by the Bhartiya Kisan Union. Hundreds of farmers from Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand are protesting against the farm laws at the Delhi-Ghaziabad border. Heart attack “Galtan Singh was at the protest site from the beginning. He suffered a massive heart attack this morning. He was taken to a private hospital where he was declared brought dead,” said Rajpal Singh, national vice president of BKU. Describing the government as “insensitive”, Mr. Singh said the government should repeal the laws and not make it a battle of egos. “ Sarkar ise moonch ki ladayi bana rahi hai ,” he said. On whether BKU could halt the movement for some time considering the drop in the temperature, Mr. Singh said even if the 40 leaders whom the government was interacting with returned home, the farmers on the ground would not return without their demands being met. “We have crossed that stage,” he asserted. “The number of martyrs has crossed 40 and considering the cold wave it could rise further,” he added. Later, BKU leader Rakesh Tikait said they didn’t want to turn the death into an opportunity to take an aggressive stance. “We quietly handed over the body to the relatives. The local administration was helpful,” he said. “Despite provocations,” he said, “we are giving peaceful negotiations a chance and hope something productive would come out of the talks on January 4. I pray the government would work for the welfare of the farmers in the New Year.” ‘Bigger goals’ On the demand for a compensation to those who lost their lives during the protest, he said it could wait. “We have bigger goals, right now. It would be raised later.” Meanwhile, in his characteristic style, he said he had appealed to the farmers to walk for some time in the morning on the Expressway. “The area beneath the flyover is polluted and smog makes it worse. The farmers are not used to it,” he said.

The Hindu

2021-01-02

Ghaziabad