3 min readChandigarhMay 13, 2021 12:40 PM IST
First published on: May 13, 2021 at 12:40 PM IST
Encouraged with the results of West Bengal polls and some ‘setback’ to the ruling BJP in UP panchayat polls, farmer leaders have announced that they would move to Uttar Pradesh to start campaigning against the saffron party soon after the withdrawal of the lockdown.
Senior BKU leader Gurnam Singh Chaduni, who was in Chandigarh Wednesday, told The Indian Express that the leaders of Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), have already discussed the plans to campaign in Uttar Pradesh ahead of the Assembly polls due in 2022.
“We have plans to move across UP soon after withdrawal of the lockdown,” said Chaduni, who was in the City Beautiful to boost the morale of supporters, who are building an environment in favour of the agitators for the past several months while standing at the roundabouts.
Farmer leaders believe that their campaign against BJP in West Bengal during the Assembly polls “played a significant role in building an environment against the saffron party over the issue of three farm laws”.
They also say that it will be an advantage for them to campaign in Uttar Pradesh as there won’t be any issues of language and distance here while these were big challenges before the farmer leaders in communicating their sentiments to the voters particularly farmers in Bengal.
“We already have personal connections in UP apart from geographical closeness,” says Chaduni. The farmer leader insists that the dominance of their agitation is not limited to Western UP only but “it has an impact across the state”.
In their fight against three farm laws, which they term as “anti-farmer”, the farmer leaders want to hit the BJP “politically” too to get the contentious laws repealed. Like Bengal, they may not campaign for any political party in UP too but may urge the farmers for “vote ki chot” (hurt with votes) against the saffron party. Earlier, the agitators had even tried to put pressure on the legislators in Haryana ahead of the no-confidence motion against the BJP-JJP government few months back. However, the Khattar government managed to win the trust vote with a thumping majority with the help of its ally JJP and independent legislators.
The agitating farmer leaders have been insisting that they are fighting for their survival adding “the corporates may grab their land after implementation of three farm laws”.
The ruling BJP has been terming the allegations baseless while insisting the laws are “pro-farmers”. Calling Chaduni as “an arhtiya and supporter of arhtiyas (commission agents at mandis), Haryana Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister JP Dalal also says that the Opposition parties, mainly Congress and communist parties, are backing the farmer agitation while insisting the BJP had emerged as a formidable organisation in Bengal now.
Farmer leaders believe that their campaign against BJP in West Bengal during the Assembly polls “played a significant role in building an environment against the saffron party over the issue of three farm laws”. (Express Photo by Gajendra Yadav) 
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