Arrest Brij Bhushan by June 9: Farm leaders warn Centre
Farmers have stepped up their support for the wrestlers' protest against Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, who has been accused of sexual harassment. They have warned the Centre of nationwide protests if Singh isn't arrested by June 9. Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader Rakesh Tikait also called for the withdrawal of cases registered against the protesting wrestlers on Friday.
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Farmer unions and khap panchayats came out in support of the protesting wrestlers, accusing the Centre of inaction days after the protesters camped at Jantar Mantar. On Thursday, farmers, under the banner of Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), also held demonstrations in Haryana and Punjab, demanding Singh's arrest. They stated that they will meet President Droupadi Murmu to seek justice for the wrestlers.
Farmer leaders were stopped at Delhi's border during Parliament inauguration
Tikait asserted that Singh must be arrested saying, "Otherwise, we will go with the wrestlers to Jantar Mantar in Delhi on June 9 and hold panchayats across the nation." The Delhi Police stopped hundreds of farmers from Uttar Pradesh at the Ghazipur border on Sunday while they were headed to the new Parliament complex to join the protest march called by the wrestlers.
Police, wrestlers clashed on day of inauguration
While the farmers led by Tikait were stopped at the Ghazipur border, the protesting wrestlers clashed with the police, who tried to stop them from marching to the new Parliament while Prime Minister Narendra Modi was inaugurating it. Notably, the police had also stopped a group of farmers, who were headed to Jantar Mantar to support the protest, at the Singhu Border in May.
Permission denied for Singh's rally in Ayodhya
To recall, the farmer unions led the year-and-a-half-long agitation against the now-repealed farm laws. Meanwhile, the WFI president stated that the "show of strength" in his support in Ayodhya had been "postponed for a few days while the police are probing the charges" against him. The rally was supposed to take place on Monday.
