Farmers Movement Archive

At UP Gate, a break before Bharat Bandh

GHAZIABAD/NOIDA: On Sunday, this group of farmers took a break from protests, faceoffs with policemen and sloganeering. With the Bharat Bandh called by the protesters still two days away and talks with the government unlikely before Wednesday, the farmers from nearby districts of UP returned home to attend to crops. They, however, promised to be back at the UP Gate protest site to participate in the all-India strike called on Tuesday. While a group of farmers left for their homes, several others joined the protesters in small batches on Sunday. At various places on the Delhi-Meerut Expressway, the speeches and songs attacking the three agriculture laws continued through the day. Rakesh Tikait, national spokesperson for Bharatiya Kisan Union, which has been at the forefront of the UP Gate protest, declined to speak much about their plans for the proposed bandh. He, however, said the farmers would stop work and continue to demonstrate at the Ghazipur border. “No talks are going to be held with the government till December 9. Until now, only political parties would call Bharat Bandh. But this time, it is the farmers who have decided to do so. We will see how this is done. I don’t know what shape it would take on December 8,” he added. The protest, Tikait said, would continue. “We are here for a long haul and more people will join us. We have been telling farmers that Delhi only listens to a loud voice. We are in constant touch with our counterparts and informing them about the developments regularly. The government wants to talk on the laws, but farmers have demanded that they be withdrawn entirely,” the BKU leader said. Asked about a group of farmers returning home, Tikait said, “Sunday being a holiday, some of them have gone back to attend to urgent work. They will be back here whenever needed.” Earlier in the day, Tikait addressed the protesters and spoke about the government’s stand on the three laws. He later hopped on to an open vehicle, drove to the Ghazipur border and returned. A number of young protesters lined up to take selfies with him, which he happily gave. Meanwhile, a group of farmers was seen scribbling “Kisan Kranti Gate” on the pillars of the UP Gate flyover. They said that over the past few years, this spot has been the centre of farmers’ agitations and needed to be identified as such. Unlike in the past, a large number of protesters this time are the youth. They are at the forefront of every sort of management and are among the most vocal ones. They have been helping run the community kitchens, prepare the food and also shout slogans against the government. Like other days, the police deployment remained tight at the spot on Sunday. As a group of farmers had blocked the Delhi-Saharanpur border on Saturday for some time, cops in large numbers were deployed in Loni and other parts of the district as well. District magistrate Ajay Shankar Pandey said, “The situation at the protest site is calm. We have been talking to their leaders and trying to remove the blockade.” At the other protest site in Chilla, the farmers continued with their agitation. The Chilla border has been completely sealed since Saturday after a group of farmers blocked the lanes for traffic from Delhi to Noida. The other carriageways are already blocked. Traffic towards Delhi was diverted to the DND flyway and Kalindi Kunj. “They are continuing their agitation. We have been continuously updating information on traffic on Twitter,” said Ganesh Saha, the DCP (traffic) in Noida.

The Times of India

2020-12-07

Ghaziabad