Farmers Movement Archive

After Ghazipur, protesters from western UP have a new address: Palwal

AGRA: Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU), which is spearheading the farmers’ movement against three agriculture laws, is now sending a large number of protesters from western UP to Palwal in Haryana, a protest point which saw revival in the last three days. The protest at Palwal resumed on February 1 after it was briefly vacated due to “pressure” from the local authorities. Some of them had left after the January 26 clashes. Arun Jaildar, the head of 52 khaps who is leading the protest at NH-19 in Palwal, said, “The protest had resumed on Monday morning with just 12 people. In the next 48 hours, over 2,500 farmers from different districts of western UP, Rajasthan, Punjab and Haryana had arrived. These people, including women, are small farmers.” “We expect the numbers to rise. In the next few days, it will become a major protest site. Local residents are making contributions, someone is giving ration and the others are helping us set up tents. Now, 52 khap panchayats are backing the farmers’ protest. We will not back off till the central government withdraws the three farm laws and guarantee MSP to the farmers,” said Jaildar. Palwal-based farmer leader Chandan Singh Solanki said, “On January 30, farmers organized a mahapanchayat. Representatives of 52 khaps were present in the meeting. Decision was taken to resume protest under leadership of Arun Jaildar. We are getting overwhelming support from farmers of western UP, Punjab and Haryana. Soon farmers from different districts of Madhya Pradesh will also join us.” State president of BKU, Rajveer Singh Jadoun, said, “We are grateful to all the khap leaders for supporting us. The protest site at Palwal will see a huge gathering in the next few days. We have asked all farmers from Madhya Pradesh who want to actively participate in the protest to reach Palwal. Farmers from Agra and Aligarh division will also be strengthening the protest there.”

The Times of India

2021-02-04

Agra