Farmers Movement Archive

Fresh batches to man protest sites

With protesters on Delhi borders being pressured to vacate dharna sites, farmer outfits in Punjab and Haryana have started mobilising fresh batches to reach the locations to ensure that the agitation does not fizzle out. Rakesh Bains, spokesperson of Bharatiya Kisan Union (Chaduni), in Haryana told The Hindu that the government was trying to scuttle the agitation. “Farmers across Haryana have decided to firmly stand against the government. Several villages in Haryana have decided to send tractor-trolleys loaded with people to the protest sites. In the next two-three days, the number of protesters will swell at the Delhi borders when tens of thousands of people will reach the borders. We will not relent till our demands are met,” he said. Joginder Singh, president of Bharatiya Kisan Union (Ugrahan), one of the largest farmers’ organisations in Punjab, said that fresh batches are on their way to join the protest. “We will not settle on anything less than repealing the three farm laws,” he said. Sarvan Singh Pandher, general secretary of Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee, said farmers and farm labourers from Punjab, mainly Gurdaspur, Kapurthala, Amirtsar and Tarn Taran districts will start marching on January 30 to reach the Singhu-Kundli border. Support from parties Some political parties have also decided to send their party workers to express solidarity with farmers. The Shiromani Akali Dal has asked its party cadre to rush to the three protests sites on the border with Delhi. Senior leader Bikram Singh Majithia appealed to all SAD and Youth Akali Dal workers to reach the dharna sites at Singhu, Tikri and Ghazipur, stating that they were needed even more than before. Mr. Majithia said, “I know a large number of you have been camping on the Delhi borders for the last two months. However, the Central government is making attempts to crush the movement in league with the BJP government of Haryana. We must ensure this attempt to silence the voice of the farmer does not succeed at any cost. No sacrifice is too big to ensure a win for the peasantry as well as ensuring peace and communal harmony is not disturbed,” he said. Indian National Lok Dal leader Abhay Chautala said he would be marching to Ghazipur in support of farmers on January 30.

The Hindu

2021-01-30

Chandigarh