Farmers Movement Archive

Farm unions threaten to intensify protests in UP ahead of polls

Farm unions opposing the Union government’s three agricultural laws are set to launch a more forceful agitation against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Uttar Pradesh, where eight people , including four farmers, were killed on Sunday, in an incident they blame on a Union minister and his son. Protesters in large numbers are moving to Lakhimpur Kheri, the site where a convoy of vehicles crushed farmers to death on October 2. A widely circulated video captured the incident in which a jeep ran over a group of protesting farmers from behind on a dusty rural road. The Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), a platform of farm unions involved in yearlong demonstrations against the Modi government, has alleged the vehicles belonged to Union minister of state for home Ajay Mishra and son Ashish Mishra. The minister and his son have denied involvement, but police have registered a case against Ashish Mishra. The farm unions held an emergency meeting soon after Sunday’s incident. Their agitation will target all BJP leaders in Uttar Pradesh, where polls are due next year, a farm leader said. “We will protest, gherao and show black flags to any BJP leader whenever and wherever they show up in public. But we will do it peacefully,” said Gurnam Singh Chaduni, a farm leader. The SKM has demanded the resignation of the Union minister and his son Ashish. “The Samyukt Kisan Morcha demands that Uttar Pradesh government should immediately impose cases with murder charges against all those involved from the side of Ajay Mishra Teni. The Union MoS should be dismissed immediately,” Chaduni said. Farmers insist that the son was present in the vehicle that ran over people. Several SKM leaders have left from different locations for Lakhimpur Kheri. The agitating farmers will target the BJP’s campaign for the 2022 Uttar Pradesh assembly elections. “We will expose their lies and resist them. Farmers will not allow them to put up their posters and campaign material. We will gherao them,” said Ajay Singh, a leader of the Tehri Kisan Andolan, part of the protests. SKM has written to President Ram Nath Kovind, demanding the dismissal of the Union minister as well as Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar for inciting violence against farmers. Khattar was caught on video asking farmers in favour of the farm laws to take up “sticks” and take on those opposing the laws. “The whole country is outraged by the incident of the brutal killing of farmers in broad daylight by mowing them down with vehicles in Lakhimpur Kheri (Uttar Pradesh) yesterday on 3rd October 2021,” the letter states. “Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Ajay Kumar Mishra ‘Teni’s’ son and his goon accomplices carried out this murderous attack in a brazen manner which shows a deep conspiracy of Uttar Pradesh and Central Governments. Ajay Mishra had already built a context to this attack by giving inflammatory and derogatory speeches against the farmers. It is no coincidence that on the same day, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar is publicly inciting his party workers to take up lathis and indulge in violence against farmers,” the letter further states. SKM leader Tajinder Virk was grievously injured in the Lakhimpur Kheri incident, Chaduni said. The injured leader was admitted to Medanta Hospital in Gurugram and is reported to be out of danger now. The SKM has said that the Supreme Court questioning the farmers’ protests when the court was hearing several matters related to the farm laws would not affect its agitation since it is not a party to the case. “The observation of the honourable Supreme court was regarding a matter related to Kisan Mahapanchayat, which has no connection with the SKM. So, the observations of the court don’t have any relations to SKM,” said Yogendra Yadav, a key leader of the SKM. “The court said ‘first farmers come to court and then they protest on streets’. I would like to clarify we have never approached the court. For us, this is a matter between farmers and the government,” Yadav added.

Hindustan Times

07-10-2021

India