Protesting farmers relent, leave for home

Bijendra Ahlawat

Tribune News Service

Faridabad, February 24

The district administration heaved a sigh of relief after hundreds of farmers from Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and Kerala, who were staying here for the past two days, suspended their agitation this noon and began to return home. The farmers, who were on their way to Delhi to hold a protest in support of their demands, were stopped by the police on Thursday and put up in the grain market of Sector 16 here.

“We have decided to return home, as the government has decided to use force and undemocratic means to crush our protest,’’ said Shiv Kumar Kakka, president of the Rashtriya Kisan Mahasangh (RKM), under the banner of which the protesters had begun a march from Bhopal.

However, he said the decision to suspend the agitation did not mean that the stir has died. “Farmers have gained strength from it and will continue their fight for justice denied for long,” he added.

Kakka criticised the government authorities for holding farmers ‘captive’ and not allowing them to hold a protest in the national capital. “I will attend the Kisan Mahapanchayat to be held in Jind on February 26,” he said. The visit of INLD leader Abhay Chautala today and the support of Congress leaders and local residents have strengthened their resolve, he added.

“The government failure to implement the recommendations of the Swaminathan Commission for agriculture and provide any relief to debt-ridden farmers, as promised earlier, provoked a large number of farmers to join the movement,” said Krishan Kumar, a social activist.

Several farmers had got their heads shaved on Friday in protest against the move to stop them from proceeding towards Delhi. A large number of policemen were posted here to keep a watch on the movement of farmers.