Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) national spokesperson and farmer leader Rakesh Tikait tweeted on Sunday that he was detained on his way to Delhi when he was entering the national Capital to participate in a protest.
In a post, Tikait said he was “arrested”. He called out the Delhi Police for “working at the behest of the Central Government”, stressing that farmers won't back down.“The Delhi Police working on the behest of the Government cannot suppress the voice of the farmers. This arrest will bring a new revolution. This struggle will continue till the last breath. We won't stop, we won't get tired, we will not bow down,” Tikait tweeted in Hindi, with pictures of him in detention.
A Delhi Police official said Tikat, the national spokesperson for the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) and a prominent face of the Sanyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), was stopped at the border around afternoon. According to police, he has agreed with the police request and "he has been escorted back". Delhi minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Gopal Rai condemned Tikait's detention, sharing a video on Twitter. "Farmer leader Rakesh Tikait was on his way to the employment movement but was stopped by the police at the border itself. This is very despicable," Rai wrote in Hindi.
Security has been tightened in the national Capital as farmers prepare to stage a protest at Jantar Mantar against unemployment in the country. The stir to be held on Monday comes days after the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) spokesperson led a demonstration in Uttar Pradesh's Lakhimpur Kheri against union minister Ajay Mishra, and his son Ashish. The minister's son is a top accused in the farmers' killing in the Lakhimpur area last year. The protests by SKM at Jantar Mantar is expected to cause hardship to daily commuters during the peak hours. The protests is expected to lead to traffic jam in central Delhi and its adjoining areas.
The SKM and other farmers' groups are organising a 'mahapanchayat' at the Jantar Mantar on Monday and they will pass through the jurisdiction of outer district, which includes the Ghazipur border in Ghaziabad."In this connection, adequate deployment of local police and outside force will be made in the area of Outer District at Tikri border, major intersections, along the railway tracks and metro station to avoid any untoward incident.
Moreover, a full proof law and order arrangement has already been issued in this regard," said Sameer Sharma, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Outer Delhi).