All quiet on western front near Ghazipur, busy with Feb 16 protest call, say UP farmers

The heavily barricaded border point near Ghazipur has seen no arrival of farmers even two days after a call given by Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee Morcha (KMM) allied with the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (non-political), exhorting farmers to march to Delhi to press their plethora of demands

The heavily fortified UP Gate/Ghazipur border continues to be a nightmare for thousands of daily commuters who are contending with snarls and congestion since Monday, when the Delhi Police sealed all major border points to prevent protesting farmers from reaching the national capital.

Except for a thick contingent of police at the heavily barricaded UP Gate border, the area was devoid of protesters as farmers from UP and Uttarakhand are yet to join the protest. (Sakib Ali/HT Photo)

The heavily barricaded border point near Ghazipur has seen no arrival of farmers even two days after a call given by Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee Morcha (KMM) allied with the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (non-political), exhorting farmers to march to Delhi to press their plethora of demands.

Farmers from Punjab and Haryana are, meanwhile, locked in a standoff with security personnel at the Shambhu border between Punjab and Haryana.

The farmers’ protest in 2020-21, seeking the withdrawal of three farm laws, had seen the participation of a galaxy of farmer leaders from western Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, besides those from Punjab and Haryana, and they had put up a unified protest at Delhi’s three main border points of Singhu, Tikri and Ghazipur.

Several of the farmer leaders HT spoke to on Wednesday said they were busy making arrangements for the February 16 ”Grameen Bandh” on a call given by ‘Samyukta Kisan Morcha’ (SKM), which also led the 2020-21 farmers’ protest.

“The SKM is not part of this present movement till the time there is some consensus (with KMM). The SKM (Punjab) is to hold a meeting on Wednesday and will decide further course of action. It was intended that any movement should be a collective effort. We generally join the protest whenever there is call given by farmers from Punjab and Haryana. The present protest started on February 13 while we have called for a protest on February 16,” said Rakesh Tikait, national spokesperson of BKU, who was a stalwart of the protest at UP Gate in 2020-21.

The KMM and SKM (non-political) are leading the current protest happening at the Shambhu border.

The Shambhu border area turned a battleground on Tuesday as thousands of farmers faced off with security personnel, who lobbed tear gas shells and fired water cannons at protesters in a bid to keep them from breaking the layers of barricades and march towards Delhi.

In response to developments at the Shambhu border, Tikait said, “Tearg as, police action etc, are part of any agitation. The government should talk to farmers. For us, the farmers and Delhi are not far away.”

Jagtar Singh Bajwa, another farmer leader from Uttarakhand, who is part of SKM, said farmers from Uttarakhand are busy with the February 16 strike call.

“The SKM has condemned the police action against farmers at Shambhu. There may be some development once we finish our February 16 strike and the SKM may take a call on the present protest. We are in support of farmers’ issues that remain the same across all farmer groups. Once there is decision to support the present protest, it will be seen on the ground,” Bajwa said.

Dharmendra Malik, spokesperson for Bharatiya Kisan Union (Arajnaitik), which is a breakaway faction of Tikait-led BKU after the 2020-21 protest, said, “Our organisation has decided to watch the developments for now. The Delhi border is not far and we may reach there in no time when required. If the present protesting farmers face trouble at the hands of the government or they reach Delhi, we may proceed to join them.”

The farmers’ leaders reiterated that the farmers’ movement of 2020-21, which was initiated by 32 different unions under the umbrella of SKM, has fractured to form the present factions of SKM (non-political), KMM, and others.

Political experts said there are disagreements between the different groups/factions.

“This is the reason that there is stand-off only at one border for now. If the present situation continues, the protest may not have a major impact. If farmers from western Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand also join in, the impact will be more ,” said KK Sharma, associate professor (history) from CCS University, Meerut.

He further said, “The present farmers’ protest has come just before the announcement of Lok Sabha elections. This time, the police and security forces seem to be better equipped and have planned well to block farmers’ march towards Delhi.”

The farmers have been demanding a law on the minimum support price (MSP). They also seek the implementation of the Swaminathan Commission’s recommendations, pensions for farmers and farm labourers, farm debt waiver, withdrawal of police cases and “justice” for victims of the Lakhimpur Kheri violence, among others.