BKU Bhanu president Bhanu Pratap Singh on Monday slammed ‘farmer leader’ Rakesh Tikait’s decision to call for a Bharat Bandh and equated it to Talibani activities. Singh said Bharat Bandh does not benefit anyone and instead affects the economy and farmers, adding that by continuing such activities, Rakesh Tikait and his supporters are following in the footsteps of the Taliban.
#WATCH | “…They (Rakesh Tikait) call themselves ‘kisan neta & then announce Bharat Bandh, which affects economy & farmers. How does it even benefit anyone? They want to follow in footsteps of Taliban by continuing similar activities…”: Bhanu Pratap Singh, BKU-BHANU President pic.twitter.com/WQri1UMAH4
— ANI (@ANI) September 27, 2021
Singh has come down hard against the farmer organisations who have extended their support to Tikait’s call for Bharat Bandh, asserting that it would not yield any desired result and would cause more damage to the farmers.
He also urged the office bearers and functionaries of the Bharatiya Kisan Union to not heed Rakesh Tikait’s call for Bharat Bandh and asked the government to crush the organisations involved in “terror activities”.
This is not the first time that the BKU Bhanu chief has trained his guns against Rakesh Tikait and the farmers’ protests. In January this year, he withdrew his support from the protest and took a hostile position against continuing the demonstrations aimed at forcing the government to rescind the newly passed Farm Laws.
The decision was taken in the aftermath of violence unleashed during the tractor rally organised on Republic Day. The tractor rally held by ‘farmers’ on Republic Day had turned violent after scores of protesters broke barricades and ran riot through the national capital, injuring police in the wake. Hundreds of protesters had laid siege to the Red Fort and desecrated the monument by unfurled a religious flag.
Later in March, Singh said the farmers’ unions protesting at the Singhu border, Ghazipur border, Tikri border were acting at the behest of the Congress party.
Congress-backed farmers’ unions call for Bharat Bandh
On Monday (September 27), Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) called for a 10-hour long ‘Bharat bandh’ (nationwide shutdown)in a bid to pressurise the Indian government to withdraw the newly enacted farm laws. The apparent ‘shutdown’ began at 6 am in the morning and will remain in force until 4 pm.
The farmer protestors began their demonstrations in September last year but failed to make any impact in the past 300 days. They had blocked highways, created inconvenience for daily commuters, and engaged in violence and vandalism. In a bid to draw the attention of the Union government, they have decided to enforce a nationwide shutdown. “All the central and state government offices, markets, shops, factories, schools, colleges and other educational institutions will not be allowed to function,” SKM had threatened.
