Opposition leaders offer support to agitating farmers
By IANSMonday, August 16, 2010
TAPPAL - Opposition leaders Monday made a beeline for Tappal town in Uttar Pradesh’s Aligarh district to show support for the thousands of agitating farmers after two farmers were killed in a clash with the police.
The farmers are agitating for higher compensation for their land acquired by the state government for construction of the Yamuna Expressway, leading from Noida to Agra and being built by a JP Group company.
The opposition leaders, including Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) chief Ajit Singh, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and former chief minister Rajnath Singh, Congress president Rita Bahuguna Joshi and Samajwadi Party leader Shivpal Singh Yadav offered full support to the farmers in their fight.
The farmers hooted Ajit Singh when he started addressing them. They alleged that the RLD leader was “soft” on the issue and did not touch on the issue of the arrest of farmer leader Rambabu Katelia.
BJP leader Rajnath Singh was welcomed by the farmers for his support to their cause. Congress president Rita Bahuguna Joshi had met the farmers’ leader in Aligarh jail Aug 16. Shivpal Singh Yadav also pledged full support to the farmers.
Earlier on Aug 14, two farmers died in police firing on farmers resisting the arrest of farmer leader Rambabu Katelia. In the clash a police constable was also killed. The farmers torched the Jattari and Bajna police posts when the police attempted to arrest the farmers in a bid to crush the agitation.
The farmers are demanding higher compensation for the land acquired for the Yamuna Expressway. The farmers had earlier agreed to Rs.449 per sq m of land, but are now demanding money on par with Noida farmers at the rate Rs.880 per sq m, to which the government did not agree.
The farmers destroyed the site offices and walls erected to raise the expressway. Work on the expressway has come to a halt and the farmers are demanding the immediate release of their leader, Rs.25 lakh compensation to the families of the victims killed in the firing and compensation at Rs.880 for the land acquired.
