Leader of Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU), Rakesh Tikait, said farmers are observing a ‘Black Day’ on Wednesday to mark six months of agitation against the three central farm laws will not march to Delhi. According to news agency ANI, he said carrying the tricolour has been six months now, but the Government is not listening to us. So farmers are putting up black flags and will be done peacefully.
Samkyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella body of protesting farmer unions, declared that farmers would observe May 26 as ‘Black Day’ to mark six months of protests.
Last week twelve major opposition parties had extended their support to the farmers protest, including the Congress, Trinamool Congress, Left parties, Samajwadi Party, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), and the DMK.
Tikait, on Tuesday said we will burn the Government’s effigy and farmers would not march towards Delhi. Anyone who wants to protest can use a black flag and put it outside their home or on their vehicle.
Tikait said while the farmers have been protesting for the past six months, the Government has “not taken back its black laws.
He added they have already written to the Centre about their concerns. If the Centre can bring in laws during the pandemic, it can indeed revoke them too. We are not going anywhere; we will stay here, we have lots of time.
The Delhi Police has requested people not to hold gatherings amid the second wave of covid-19 pandemic and the ongoing lockdown and said it is keeping a tight survelliance on the city’s borders, to deal with any situation at the protest sites.
Hundreds of farmers are presently at five sites near Delhi’s borders: Singhu, Ghaziabad, Tikri, Dhansa, and Shahjahanpur. Farmers’ unions from Haryana and Punjab are urging to roll back the three laws passed in September 2020 to lift restrictions on the trade of farm produce to allow more private investments. The farmers say that these laws will leave them at the mercy of large corporations and supermarkets.
Since November 26, 2020, farmers have been protesting against the farm laws passed by the Government, including the Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020; the Farmers Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act 2020 and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020
