Farmers Movement Archive

Chandigarh: Shed ego, farm leaders tell BJP after party’s loss in Bengal

BATHINDA/KURUKSHETRA: The mood was upbeat at farmer protest sites on Sunday over BJP losing the West Bengal assembly polls. Protesters said they could not have hoped for a better result than the saffron party failing to grab power in the state and that the election result was no less than “sanjivani” (panacea) for the protesters. They said the poll outcome should make the saffron party shed its “egoistic approach”. One of the protester's justified the loss by saying: “As you sow, so shall you reap.” The farmers protesting against the three farm laws had campaigned against the BJP in the run-up to the assembly polls. They had visited West Bengal, Assam and Kerala to campaign against the BJP, but it is West Bengal where they put a lot of energy into making fervent appeals to the electorate. “It is a big blow not only for the party, but for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who spent a lot of time campaigning in West Bengal and behaved like an irresponsible leader with his body language. Now his government should come back to ground and resume dialogue process with farmers and listen to them by shedding its ego,” said farm leader Rakesh Tikait while speaking to TOI over telephone. Farm leader Balbir Singh Rajewal said farmers deserved a pat on the back for contributing to the BJP’s defeat in Bengal. “BJP leaders were making claims on what difference farmers will make in West Bengal. If the BJP has lost, it is because of the farmers who went to Bengal and made people aware of farm laws and how these laws will affect every section of society,” said Rajewa. BKU (Ekta Ugrahan) president Joginder Singh Ugrahan said the poll outcome would have a direct bearing on the farmers’ struggle. “As the BJP has lost ground in West Bengal, we feel the central government may shed its ego which we are waiting for long. Poll results have made it clear that farm struggle is for legitimate demands and BJP must pay heed to it,” said Ugrahan. BKU (Charuni) president Gurnam Singh Charuni said the countdown to the BJP government’s end had begun with the loss in West Bengal. “Next year, we have elections in UP and farmers of the entire nation will campaign in UP and remove the BJP government from there as well,” said Charuni. “This (Modi) is (a) Rajhatthi Raja (intransigent ruler)... Today, we want to tell RSS that there is still time to remove this raja and avoid deaths of innocent farmers on the roads. Be cautious, else there would be no name of BJP in the country,” said Charuni.

The Times of India

2021-05-03

Amritsar