Farmers work to revive agitation

NEW DELHI: Farmer groups leading the protests against the three contentious farm laws have taken several measures to keep the agitation going after the tractor parade on Republic Day ended in violence. These include district and village-level ‘mahapanchayat’, door-to-door visits, announcements in every lane and street, appeals from the loudspeakers at temples, mosques and gurdwaras and WhatsApp groups to disseminate information and curb rumours. The measures, farm leaders said, will help “revive” the protest, which met a rude jolt after the Republic Day incident.

Several farmer groups joined the protesters at Ghazipur on Sunday where the Ghaziabad administration served an eviction notice to the protesters on Thursday. People from all age groups were seen arriving in the hundreds in convoys of cars and tractors throughout the day despite police blocking many routes leading to the site.

Among them was Ranveer

Rathi, a farmer from Muzaffarnagar who had arrived at the protest site after attending a mahapanchayat organised to garner support for Bharatiya Kisan Union (Tikait) leader Rakesh Tikait. “I have come here with a group of hundred farmers and a sea of people is on their way to the Delhi-UP border to avenge the tears of Rakesh Tikait… And, this time it’s a matter of pride now. We are making sure that at least one person from each family in our village comes here and tell the government that they can’t pressure us to vacate the site,” he said.