An estimated 5,000 people took part in today’s protest which remained peaceful: Bengaluru police.
New Delhi/Mumbai/Bengaluru:
Thousands of people hit the streets in Karnataka’s capital Bengaluru to protest against the new farm laws and to show support for protesting farmers in Delhi, where one person died today as clashes erupted after the Republic Day tractor rally took a chaotic turn.
Supporters poured in from Musuru, Haveri and Mandya districts, among others, gathering at Bengaluru’s mail railway station to walk to Freedom Park. While some walked, others came on their tractors, cars and motorcycles.
“We have come from Haveri district. We will continue our protest and continue to support our farmer brothers,” a woman told NDTV.
“What we are seeing today, on January 26, I have not seen something like this in the past 45 years of my life. It is unfortunate that the government is not listening to us,” said a member of the Bharat Kisan Ekta Morcha that is against the three farm laws.
Members of the Karnataka Mangalammukhi Foundation for transwomen, who arranged food and water for people, said “you and me, eat food every day because of farmers…we will help in whatever way possible”.
According to the Bengaluru police, an estimated 5,000 people took part in today’s protest, which remained peaceful.
Similar scenes were also seen in parts of Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, where a large number of women from the Gulabi Gang, a women empowerment organisation based in the state’s Bundelkhand region, came out in farmers’ support.
In UP today, apart from political protests in solidarity with farmers , members of the Gulabi Gang , a women empowerment organisation based in the state’s Bundelkhand region , took out this march in support of the #FarmerProtestspic.twitter.com/JNgI81RMtw
— Alok Pandey (@alok_pandey) January 26, 2021
The Samajwadi Party — in opposition in UP — also organised rallies in all districts including Etawah’s Saifai where party chief and former Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav addressed a gathering.
In Mumbai, the protests took on the form of celebrations at Azad Maidan, where an estimated 15,000 people had gathered over the past two days. They left for their homes on Tuesday after an elderly woman agitator hoisted the national flag.
“A committee will be formed and we (state government) will not implement these laws,” Maharashtra assembly speaker Nana Patole said today as state’s farmers said that they will march to Delhi “if the need arises on February 1” in response to a call to walk to the Parliament ahead of the Budget session.
The declaration was made as NCP chief Sharad Pawar addressed the gathering and slammed the way the three agricultural laws were passed in Parliament apparently without much discussion.