Farmers Movement Archive

Tikri incident rekindles bad memories of Lakhimpur Kheri: Farmers

Tribune News ServiceJhajjar, October 28Punjab farmers staying put at the Tikri border are stunned by the incident in which a truck ran over three women in Bahadurgarh town here on Thursday morning.They said the incident not only rekindled the bad memories of Lakhimpur Kheri but also raised serious questions over the way it happened.“The wounds of Lakhimpur Kheri are yet to be healed and another gruesome incident has caused us more pain, as we never imagined that such an incident would take place at Tikri as well. It has also raised a serious question mark over the safety of protesting farmers as heavy vehicles pass from this place round the clock. The elderly women were waiting for an auto-rickshaw on the road divider when the speeding truck hit them,” said Lakhvinder Singh, a Punjab farmer.Buta Singh, a BKU leader, said the incident had left several doubts on their minds, hence besides the police, they too were probing the case at their level from various angles. “We visited the incident spot and were informed that initially, the truck was not in a high speed when it mowed down the women. It was seen stationed some distance away from the spot,” he added.Meanwhile, Jhajjar SP Waseem Akram said since the main highway remained closed at the Tikri border, it was the only route for heavy vehicles to enter Delhi. However, some way out of the issue would definitely be found out.Also, a delegation of the All India Kisan Sabha, led by its state secretary Sumit Kumar, rushed to Bahadurgarh and interacted with eyewitnesses. “It’s hard to believe that it is an accident. A fair probe is needed in the case. The truck bearing Haryana number was seen parked nearby just before it came speeding and jumped the divider and ran over the sitting group of women there,” said Sumit, adding that a fair compensation should be given to kin of the deceased.Restrict movement of heavy vehiclesThe district administration should restrict the movement of heavy vehicles at the protest site to avoid such incidents. — Jaspreet Singh, a farmer at Tikri border

The Tribune

2021-10-29