Farmers Movement Archive

On Lohri, copies of farm laws set on fire in Punjab, Haryana

BATHINDA: Upping the ante against the contentious farm laws on Lohri, farmers burnt copies of the three Central acts at hundreds of places across Punjab and Haryana, and at protest sites on the borders of Delhi on Wednesday. Calling the laws “death warrants”, farmers threw copies of the laws into bonfires lit to observe the festival. Like Dussehra, when effigies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and of two corporates were burnt, photos of the PM and of the heads of the same companies, were thrown into the fire by the farmers as they pledged to continue their protests against the laws. Students and members of bar associations also set on fire copies of the laws in Patiala and Jalandhar. “For us, the meaning of festivals has been lost since June 5, 2020, when the three ordinances were issued. Today, we have been forced to observe Lohri in anger,” said Gurbachan Singh, a farmer who has been protesting at Barnala railway station. Samyukt Kisan Morcha leaders, too, burnt copies of the law at the Delhi border. In Jind, farmer outfits, khaps and women protested at Khatkar toll plaza on the Jind-Patiala highway. After the protest, they burnt copies of the laws. Farmers said the entire world, gradually, was coming forward to extend support to the farmers and 15 countries had supported the Indian farming community. Khera khap president Satbir Pahalwan said opposition to Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar’s event in Karnal had shown that opposition to the laws had become a “jan aandolan (people’s movement)” and that the BJP should take it seriously. “ PM Narendra Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah are assuming there are few farmers who are protesting, but the reality is the opposite. Sooner or later, the government will have to repeal these laws,” he added. In Jalandhar, activists of Bharti Kisan Union (Rajewal) burnt copies of the laws in front of the district administration complex. Members of Jalandhar District Bar Association also burnt the laws. Copies were also burnt at Desh Bhagat Yaadgaar Hall, where members of Bahujan Samaj Front also participated. At Company Bagh Chowk, members of Sikh Talmel Committee and Punjab Youth Organisation burnt posters of BJP leaders Harjit Grewal and Surjit Kumar Jiyani along with copies of the laws. At Patiala’s Punjabi University, students organised street plays against the laws and also burnt their copies on campus. Krantikari Kisan Union vicepresident Harbhajan Buttar also joined the students and addressed them about the farmers’ agitation. Punjab Radical Student Union (PRSU), All India Research Scholars Association (AIRSA) and Democratic Students Organisation (DSO) leaders organised the event. “Students will join the farmers’ agitation for January 26 in Delhi,” said PRSU leader Sandeep Kaur.

The Times of India

2021-01-14

Delhi