LAKHIMPUR KHERI
rifice, Lovepreet,” tweeted Rahul Gandhi. Lovepreet Singh was one of the four farmers who died in Sunday’s violence.
Local farmers blame junior home minister Ajay Mishra ‘Teni’ and his son Ashish Mishra for the violence that left four cultivators dead. Farm groups say a Mahindra Thar owned by Mishra mowed down protesters from behind while they were returning from a demonstration in Tikunia village on Sunday afternoon.
The minister and his son deny the charge and say farmers pelted the car with stones that led the driver losing control of the vehicle. They also accuse the protesters of lynching two Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers and the car’s driver. A local journalist was also killed in the melee.
Some unverified videos of the incident appear to back the farmers’ version of the incident and show the Thar knocking down protesters from behind. On Wednesday, a new, clearer 45-second video showed the Thar plough through the farmers at high speed, with two vehicles in tow. The identities of individuals wasn’t clear and HT couldn’t independently verify the clips.
Ashish Mishra and 20 others have been booked for murder but farmers continue to press for his arrest.
“We will wait till the ‘ardas’ (prayers performed on the 10th day after the death of a person belonging to Sikh community) for the arrest of the accused and resignation of the minister,” farm leader Rakesh Tikait said.
The government gave ₹45 lakh as compensation for each family and announced a judicial probe. Channi and Baghel also announced ₹50 lakh compensation each to the victims’ families.
Since violence rocked the region three days ago, tensions have run high as the government ringed the village with police, clamped prohibitory orders, snapped internet and denied landing permission to Baghel’s and Channi’s flights. It also detained Priyanka Gandhi in the early hours on Monday, sparking a political row.
Wednesday began with high drama. The state government initially appeared reluctant to allow Congress leaders to visit Tikunia and denied permission to them to reach Lucknow. Finally, Gandhi and the others were given boarding passes in Delhi and touched down in Lucknow at 1.30pm – only to run into a wall of policemen
“I want to move out of the airport. They are not allowing me to move out. What kind of permission is this?” said Rahul Gandhi, sitting on a dharna at the airport. On Tuesday, Baghel had also been denied permission to leave the terminal.
Minutes later, a heated altercation broke out between Gandhis and the security personnel over the choice of vehicle. “We want to go in our car, but they (police) want to take us in their vehicle. I have asked them to go in my personal vehicle. They are planning something,” said Rahul Gandhi to reporters.
Around 3pm, the Congress delegation left the airport towards Lakhimpur Kheri,