Farmers Movement Archive

Farmers' protest: INLD leader Abhay Chautala backs Rakesh Tikait

GHAZIABAD: “I offer my whole-hearted support to Tikait-ji,” declared INLD leader Abhay Chautala, addressing farmers at the UP Gate protest site on the Ghazipur border. It was a significant moment in the agitation, which has seen a dramatic resurrection at UP Gate, and one that also indicated a change in tack. Gone is the reticence to host politicians at the site, a running theme since the agitation began two months ago at Delhi’s borders in a bid to keep the protest “apolitical”. In the last 48 hours, since thousands of farmers began pouring into UP Gate in response to BKU leader Rakesh Tikait’s tearful call for support after the state government served an eviction notice to the protesters in the wake of the Republic Day violence in Delhi during the tractor rally, several frontline politicians have visited the agitation site – AAP’s Manish Sisodia and RLD’s Jayant Chaudhary on Friday and Chautala on Saturday. Chautala, the three-time MLA from Elenabad who recently resigned as legislator to demand the withdrawal of the new central laws the farmers are protesting against, told the gathering, “When Devi Lal was the chief minister of Haryana, he had close ties with Mahendra Singh Tikait. Our relationship goes back a long way and today I have come to cement it.” Rakesh Tikait is Mahendra Singh Tikait’s son while Abhay Chautala is Devi Lal’s grandson. As leader of INLD, a party which draws its support base from farmers, Chautala has positioned himself as the rightful heir of the legacy of his grandfather, one of Haryana’s tallest farmer leaders, a mantle that is also claimed by deputy CM and JJP leader Dushyant Chautala, Abhay’s nephew, who is now a partner in the BJP-headed coalition government in Haryana. Later in the day, the INLD leader told TOI, “I am following in the footsteps of my grandfather Chaudhary Devi Lal, who devoted his entire life to the welfare of farmers. Our party always stands against anyone working against the interest and welfare of farmers.” Chautala’s visit further buoyed the protest site at UP Gate where protesters have been pouring in since Friday morning as Tikait’s speech became a rallying point with khap panchayats in west UP and Haryana stepping in to mobilise support for the agitation. Emotions ran high as the slogan of ‘kisan ekta zindabad’ resonated around the protest site in a crescendo. BKU spokesperson Shamsher Rana said Tikait was presented with a special headgear by the Sikh community for salvaging the agitation. Commenting on politicians visiting the agitation site, Tikait told TOI, “There are some political parties which are ready to rain lathi blows on us, while there are some who are extending support to our agitation. What to do?” He added, “We were never averse to seeking their support. Our only condition was that they would not be allowed to use the issue for their own political goals. That is the reason we have not allowed any leader to share the stage. Our protest is apolitical.” Police and paramilitary presence has, meanwhile, substantially reduced at the protest site, compared to the deployment of January 29 when the eviction notice was served. “We have reserve forces on standby mode. There is no need as of now to deploy force because things are under control,” said Ajay Shankar Pandey, Ghaziabad’s district magistrate. (Additional reporting by Shahnawaz Alam in Gurugram)

The Times of India

2021-01-31

Ghaziabad