Day after clashes, UP hamlet turns fortress
OVER 1,000 SIKH FARMERS AND MEMBERS OF FARM UNIONS HAVE THRONGED TIKUNIA FROM NEARBY DISTRICTS
LAKHIMPUR KHERI: A nondescript hamlet just 10km away from the India-nepal border, Tikunia was known in the region for its superior paddy crop and the Lohri mela, the folk festival marking the end of winter.
But on Monday, the area turned into a fortress as close to 1,500 security personnel descended on the hamlet to contain the protests that started after the death of eight people, including four farmers, on Sunday. All the four farmers killed were Sikhs.
Tikunia — in the Terai belt of the state — has a sizeable Sikh population comprising primarily of farmers, who have been protesting against the three cental farm laws. “Will we be killed for protesting peacefully now? What kind of rule is this?” asked a protesting farmer Jaswant Singh on hand-held megaphone, clad in a white kurta-pyjama and green turban. The crowd sitting on the ground listened quietly as the man continued, “If we remain quiet now, we will be silenced forever.”
The protesters blocked the narrow road connecting the area with district headquarters, about 70 km away, demanding compensation for the kin of the deceased farmers and action against the local Bharatiya Janata Party MP -- Union minister of state for home Ajay Mishra and his son Ashish Mishra, who is an accused in the case.
“We will not leave this spot till a decision is made regarding the arrest of the minister and his son,” said a farmer standing atop a trolley, blocking the Tikunia road. Residents from the town, including youngsters, thronged to pay their respects to the four farmers, whose bodies were kept in freezers on the road. A large number of police personnel stood on one side of the road, 100 metres from the spot where farmers negotiated demands with government officials. Over 1,000 Sikh farmers and members of farm unions reached Tikunia from nearby districts and states, including Uttarakhand, Punjab and Haryana, to participate in the protest.
Hundreds of Sikh volunteers carrying sticks managed the crowd, directing them towards the bodies and then to the ground, where the crowd swelled as the day progressed. The volunteers distributed tea and water to both the crowd and the security personnel.
Later in the day, farm leader Rakesh Tikait asked protesting farmers to clear the road after the government accepted their demands. “This is a victory for all the farmers of the country. It is the first time that an FIR has been lodged against a Union minister in this government.”