‘Death to Modi’ slogans raised at farmers’ protest

NEW DELHI: If a viral video is to be believed, slogans calling for death to Prime Minister Narendra Modi were raised at the ongoing farmers’ protest on Saturday. This comes on the heels of rising allegations that the protests are being hijacked by “anti-social” and “ultra-Left” forces.

A group of women, seemingly from the Akhil Bharatiya Kisan Sabha, chanted “haaye haaye Modi, marr jaa tu” (Fie, Modi, go die) at one of the protest sites. The slogans further said that PM Modi has “betrayed farmers” and “sold off the country”.

The protest, which has been called by farmers’ unions to demand the repeal of the recently passed farm laws, have invited criticism for shifting focus from its original demands and fuelling “anti-social” and anti-national sentiments. Critics have also noted striking similarities with the anti-CAA sit-in at Shaheen Bagh in Delhi, leading to allegations that the protests have been hijacked by other groups.

In a list of demands submitted to the Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar in November, the protesting farmers have included a demand to withdraw all cases filed against “farmer leaders all over India, intellectuals, poets, lawyers, writers and human and democratic rights activists.”

This point had not featured in the set of demands submitted in October. Although the list does not name anyone, posters and banners demanding the release of Delhi riots-accused Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam were recently seen at the protest sites. Posters calling for the immediate release of activists and intellectuals jailed with regard to the Elgar Parishad case were also put up at the Tikri border on 11 December.