Kanpur/Lucknow: The storage yard of a state infrastructure authority was set on fire in Unnao on Sunday, a day after farmers demanding adequate compensation for their land acquired for a proposed township clashed with police, officials familiar with the matter said.
According to police, the Uttar Pradesh State Industrial Development Authority (UPSIDA), which acquired the land for the Trans-Ganga City project, suffered losses running into lakhs in Sunday’s arson.
Stating that no casualties were reported in the incident, Unnao additional district Magistrate Rakesh Singh said: “No one will be allowed to disturb law and order. Action will be initiated against those who set the portion of the godown on fire.” He added that no farmers’ group had so far claimed responsibility for the act.
On Saturday, protesting farmers and police clashed when government officials visited the project site. Police officials said they were forced to baton charge and use tear gas shells to quell the mob that pelted them with stones. Five people have been arrested in connection with the violence.
The Rashtriya Kisan Manch (RKM), a farmers’ body, said the protesters did not indulge in any violence. “The farmers are not indulging in violent protests and are only demanding adequate compensation for their land. Is their demand unjustified?” RKM president Shekhar Dixit said.
{{/usCountry}}The Rashtriya Kisan Manch (RKM), a farmers’ body, said the protesters did not indulge in any violence. “The farmers are not indulging in violent protests and are only demanding adequate compensation for their land. Is their demand unjustified?” RKM president Shekhar Dixit said.
{{/usCountry}}The state’s Opposition parties looked to corner the Yogi Adityanath-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government, accusing it of ignoring farmers’ demands. Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, in a statement, said: “The government and the police attempted to suppress the voice of farmers who were raising their just demands.”
Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra shared a video of Saturday’s clash on Twitter and tweeted in Hindi: “Can UP chief minister only deliver flowery speeches on farmers? Under the BJP government, farmers are subjected to humiliation. Farmers demanding compensation for their land were beaten up mercilessly by the police.”
The state government, however, maintained that the farmers were duly compensated. “As many as 1,925 farmers out of 2,039 have been given compensation. Only 114 are left, as their division of land is pending in court. In other words, the court will decide who will get compensation,” UP BJP spokesperson Manish Shukla said in a tweet.
(With PTI inputs)