On June 2, former Aam Aadmi Party leader and Hindi Poet Dr Kumar Vishwas posted a photograph of food and made a pun on “do June ki roti”. Many of his followers made positive comments on his post; however, one Facebook user Naved Ul Azim was not happy with the post. He pointed out that Kumar Vishwas failed to raise his voice in favour of farmers who are protesting against the three farm laws enacted by the Government of India in September 2020.
Azim said, “The food you are eating is because of the farmers. However, you did not say a word in favour of them. Do you support the other side, or someone has control over you?”
Vishwas schools Azim
Vishwas gave a befitting reply to Azim and said, “First of all, give my warm regards to your mother, who taught you the “decent” language you have used in your comment. The food you see on my plate was grown on my farm. Brinjal and bottle gourd was grown here. The chickpea lentil you see on my plate was grown at my KV Kutir. Raita was made with milk produced by the Gir Cow at my gaushala. The jaggery you can see in the photo was made using sugarcane grown here. Onion and cucumber were also grown at my farm. Water was taken from our tubewell.”
He further added that the spices like cumin, bay leaves, and coriander were also grown at his farm. “However, salt is from Gujarat. If you have a problem with the salt produced in Gujarat, then it will remain for some more time. You have to tolerate it as I cannot do anything about it. If you have any problem other than frustration, do let me know. I will send medicine and a doctor,” he added.
Farmer protests against Agriculture laws
Since the three agriculture laws were enacted by the Government of India in September 2020, so-called farmers, especially from Punjab and Haryana, have been protesting against them. Calling the laws “black laws”, the farmer union leaders have alleged that the government introduced the laws for the welfare of the corporate sector. On the contrary, the laws not only provide an option to the farmers to sell the produce in private markets but also give them an upper hand in case anyone tries to cheat them in contract farming.
Notably, the laws were put on hold by the Government of India for 15 months, but the farmer unions, along with thousands of farmers, are still lodged at the Delhi border. There have been reports that the farmer protests have caused a surge in the Covid-19 cases in Punjab. On January 26, a group of alleged farmers barged into Delhi and raised two flags with Sikh Holy symbol on Red Fort. Several Police personnel were injured, and property worth crores were damaged during the Republic Day riots in Delhi.
The farmers’ protests are also clouded by Khalistani infiltration and accusations of sexual abuse by the frontrunners in the protests.
