Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar launched a blistering assault on farmers’ protests on Wednesday, saying the word ‘Kisaan’ had been tainted. He also criticized the recent alleged gang rape of a Bengal lady who died as a result of Covid-19.
‘The word ‘Kisaan’ is pure & everyone holds them in high regard. Due to a few unfortunate incidents, the word has become tarnished. The dignity of sisters & daughters is taken away, murders are happening, roads being blocked. I condemn the incidents that are undemocratic,’ said the CM.
Khattar was most likely alluding to the suspected gang rape of a 26-year-old West Bengal woman who died of Covid-19 on April 30 while attending a farmers’ demonstration near the Tikri border. Khattar also mentioned the death of a 42-year-old man, whose relatives said he was set on fire by four individuals involved with a farmers’ demonstration near the Tikri border.
Continuing his diatribe on farmers’ leaders, the Chief Minister said that those leading the movement are not farmers at all. Real farmers have no complaints about the agricultural legislation; they are pleased.
He said that people who are opposed to the agricultural legislation are simply doing so for political reasons. They are doing so because the Punjab elections are quickly approaching. However, there are no elections scheduled in Haryana. There is an intent to discredit the government by political means, and Congress is complicit in this.
In an appeal to farmers to cease their protest, Khattar said the farmer unions should not be insistent on repealing the new central agricultural rules.
The Chief Minister described the new Agricultural Laws as ‘farmer-friendly,’ adding that with their adoption, farmers will be able to sell their crops in the mandi or open market of their choosing. Farmers in Haryana have made more money this year by selling mustard crops in the open market at a higher price than the MSP, he noted.
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