On Monday (May 30), an unidentified man walked up to the stage and assaulted ‘farmer leader’ Rakesh Tikait with a microphone. Within seconds, another man approached Tikait and blackened the face with ink.
The incident took place during an event held in Bengaluru. Reportedly, Rakesh Tikait was present at the event to clarify about a sting operation wherein one farmer leader named Kodihalli Chandrashekar was caught soliciting money.
This is condemnable
— Amit Kumar (@AMIT_GUJJU) May 30, 2022
Mic attack is just shameful
😭🤣 pic.twitter.com/RwajUF37vA
After the two unidentified men attacked Rakesh Tikait, others present at the event began assaulting the duo with chairs. A video of the brawl was shared on social media by news agency ANI.
#WATCH Black ink thrown at Bhartiya Kisan Union leader Rakesh Tikait at an event in Bengaluru, Karnataka pic.twitter.com/HCmXGU7XtT
— ANI (@ANI) May 30, 2022
While speaking about the matter, Rakesh Tikait blamed the BJP government for not providing adequate security for the event. He told ANI, “No security has been provided by local police here. This has been done in collusion with the government.”
Three persons have been detained for throwing black ink at Bhartiya Kisan Union leader Rakesh Tikait at an event in Bengaluru, Karnataka: High Grounds Police Station
— ANI (@ANI) May 30, 2022
Meanwhile, the High Grounds police had informed that three people were detained in connection to the incident.
Rakesh Tikait ousted from Bharatiya Kisan Union for playing politics
Earlier this month, the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU), which had been at the forefront of anti-farm law protests, expelled ‘farmer leader’ Rakesh Tikait from the organisation. His brother Naresh Tikait was also ousted from the position of the National President of BKU.
Republic TV reported that the duo was accused of playing politics and working for a political party’s interests. Not happy with the organisation’s involvement with politics, several leaders of BKU decided to end their association with Rakesh Tikait.
The farmer’s organisation thereafter split into two factions, with the breakaway BKU (Apolitical) faction being led by farmer leader Rajesh Singh Chauhan. While speaking about the development, Chauhan had accused the Tikait brothers of politicising BKU, which was supposedly created to serve the interest of farmers.