Farmers Movement Archive

Lakhimpur Kheri violence sparks off farmer protests in Punjab

The violence in Uttar Pradesh’s Lakhimpur Kheri that killed eight people, including four farmers, on Sunday sparked off protests in Punjab on Monday morning with protesters gathering at district headquarters in Amritsar, Patiala, Ludhiana, Barnala, Bathinda, Sangrur and Malerkotla on the call of the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella body of 32 farmer unions that is spearheading the agitation against the Centre’s three farm laws since last year. Also read: ₹45L and job for victim’s kin, judicial probe: Lakhimpur Kheri stalemate ends The SKM on Monday wrote to President Ram Nath Kovind, demanding the dismissal of minister of state for home Ajay Mishra Teni from the Union council of ministers and the setting up of a special investigation team (SIT) under the supervision of the Supreme Court into the killing of the four farmers. Farmers owing allegiance to the SKM protested outside the deputy commissioner’s office in Amritsar from 10am to 1.30pm, while police kept a tight vigil. In Sangrur, members of farmer unions, students and Congress workers held separate protests to oppose Lakhimpur Kheri violence in Sangrur, Barnala and Malerkotla districts on Monday. Over hundreds of farmers held demonstrations opposite the district administration complexes in these districts. Besides, the Congressmen burnt effigies of BJP minister Ajay Mishra in Sangrur and Malerkotla. Also, students associated with Punjab Student Union (Lalkaar), PSU (Shaheed Randhawa) and Punjab Radical Students Union opposed the incident at Government Ranbir College, Sangrur.Farmers supporting the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee (KMSC) tried to gherao the house of BJP national general secretary Tarun Chugh near Hathi Gate in Amritsar, but police foiled the bid and put up barricades where they raised slogans against the Centre and burnt effigies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath. “We will intensify our agitation against the Centre,” said KMSC general secretary Sarwan Singh Pandher, who was leading the protesters. The farmers also protested at the Bhandari Bridge, which connects both parts of the holy city. “The barbaric killing of the farmers was pre-planned to crush their resistance against the authoritarian Yogi-Modi regime in UP and India,” said Rattan Singh Randhawa, a leader of Jamhuri Kisan Sabha.The protesters compared the killing with that of Jallianwala Bagh in 1919, seeking stringent action against the guilty. Students of Guru Nanak Dev University (GNDU) also staged a big demonstration in the main campus. Gurdaspur, Tarn Taran and Pathankot also saw protests in major towns. Manjit Singh of BKU (Ugrahan) criticized the Yogi government from preventing farmers and political leaders from visiting the site of the violence.In Doaba too, farmers submitted a memorandum to the DCs, also demanding that Union minister of state Ajay Mishra should be removed immediately. They also sought action against the Haryana chief minister, Manohar Lal Khattar for his provocative remarks. Doaba Kisan Union and Bharatiya Kisan Union (Rajewal) leaders said people must rally against the BJP to maintain communal harmony. In Bhogpur, farmers burnt effigy of the central government. In Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar district, farm leaders said the sacrifice of farmers will not go in vain. PROTESTS PASS OFF PEACEFULLY IN MAJHAActivists of farmer unions gathered in large numbers outside the district administrative complexes (DACs) in southern Punjab for three hours to protest against the UP violence. A large number of farmers of the BS Rajewal faction of the Bhartiya Kisan Union gathered outside the house of Abohar BJP MLA Arun Narang and burnt effigies of BJP leaders. Security was tightened in Barnala, Bathinda, Mansa and Ferozepur and the protests passed off peacefully. In a statement, BKU (Ekta-Ugrahan) general secretary Sukhdev Singh Kokri Kalan said the governments at the Centre and UP had adopted an indifferent stance against their demands.

Hindustan Times

04-10-2021

Chandigarh