Farmers Movement Archive

Bid to turn Kheri issue into ‘Hindu vs Sikh’ battle: Varun Gandhi

LAKHIMPUR KHERI: BJP Lok Sabha member Varun Gandhi on Sunday said an attempt was being made to turn the Lakhimpur Kheri incident into a ‘Hindu versus Sikh’ battle and warned against “creating these fault lines and reopening wounds that have taken a generation to heal”. In a Twitter post on Sunday, which was retweeted over 5,000 times within a few hours, the Pilibhit MP said, “An attempt to turn Lakhimpur Kheri into a Hindu vs Sikh battle is being made. Not only is this an immoral and false narrative, it is dangerous to create these fault lines and reopen wounds that have taken a generation to heal. We must not put petty political gains above national unity.” Gandhi, who was dropped from the party’s national executive just days ago, told TOI later that the issue has no religious connotations and the actual struggle for justice in Lakhimpur Kheri is about the “cruel massacre of poor farmers in the face of an arrogant local power elite.” He said: “To use the word ‘Khalistani’ liberally to describe the protesting farmers is not only an insult to the generations of these proud sons of Terai that have fought and shed blood on our borders, it is also extremely dangerous for our national unity if this provokes the wrong kind of reaction,” he said. Gandhi has in recent weeks often tweeted his support to the farmers’ protests against the three central farm laws. On October 5, he shared a video of the Lakhimpur Kheri violence and demanded the arrest of the owners of vehicles that allegedly mowed down protesting farmers and a journalist. A day later, he and his mother, former union minister Maneka Gandhi, were dropped from the BJP’s national executive committee. Earlier, Gandhi had also written letters to UP CM Yogi Adityanath outlining several measures that could “help farmers improve their revenues and resolve their issues”, including increasing sugarcane prices, doubling the amount of the PM Kisan scheme and bonus on wheat and paddy.

The Times of India

2021-10-11

India