More Farmers Heading To Delhi Borders From Punjab, Uttar Pradesh As Agitation Swells

An agitation that appeared to be fizzling out after the Republic Day violence in the capital, has been revived with more and more farmers heading to Delhi from various parts of Punjab and other states.

Various farmer leaders on January 30 claimed that with more and more farmer groups marching towards Delhi, there would be a record gathering of peasants and farm labourers on the borders of the national capital by February 2.

ANI

Bharatiya Kisan Union (Rajewal) president Balbir Singh Rajewal said he expects a record gathering by February 2 at the border points of Delhi.

Farmers and farm labourers at some places including Sangrur and Mohali in Punjab observed a hunger strike in support of farmers' agitation on January 30. Protesting farmers even burnt effigies of the Centre at 400 places in 14 districts of Punjab against the new farm laws, demanding its repeal.

"People from several areas are heading towards Delhi borders to join the agitation,¡± said Bharti Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan) general secretary Sukhdev Singh Kokrikalan on Saturday. ¡°Our "jatha" (group) of at least 700-800 tractors will leave for the Tikri border protest site on Sunday,¡± said Kokrikalan. He said only those people who went for participating in the January 26 tractor parade came back.

ANI

He insisted that the laws enacted by the BJP-led central government would cause heavy damage to the farm sector of the country. BKU (Rajewal) leader Balbir Singh Rajewal said people in large numbers from Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttarakhand are reaching the protest sites.

¡°Possibly by February 2, there will again be a record gathering of people at the protest sites,¡± claimed Rajewal, insisting that it would be completely peaceful. Rajewal also appealed to the people joining the agitation at the Delhi border to keep the protest peaceful. He also asked them not to get provoked which otherwise would affect the ongoing peaceful agitation.

To express solidarity with protesting farmers, panchayats of some villages in Bathinda, Ludhiana and Sangrur in Punjab even passed resolutions, asking villagers to send one person from each family to the protest sites.