Farmers were treated like terrorists, it's an insult: Raut

Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut told reporters that protesting farmers were treated like terrorists. They were even called 'Khalistani', he said.

Mumbai (Maharashtra): Hitting out at the Centre for preventing farmers to enter Delhi, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut on Sunday said that it was an insult that farmers have been treated like "terrorists" and they are even being called "Khalistani".

"The way farmers have been stopped from entering Delhi, it looks like as if they do not belong to this country. They have been treated like terrorists. Since they are Sikh and have come from Punjab and Haryana, they are being called Khalistani. It is an insult to farmers," Raut said while speaking to reporters here.

Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav slammed the Bharatiya Janata Party for allegedly "humiliating the farmers by calling them terrorists" and said that if this is the case then they should stop consuming goods produced by the farmers.

"Humiliating the farmers by calling them terrorists is the worst form of BJP. This is a conspiracy of the BJP, which supports the rich and wants to mortgage small-businesses, shopkeepers, roads transport everything to big corporates.

If according to the BJP, the farmers are terrorists, then the party should swear that they will not consume the produce grown by farmers," Yadav tweeted in Hindi.

BSP supremo Mayawati and Congress leader Digvijaya Singh have also urged the Centre to reconsider the "anti-farmer" laws.

Farmers are protesting against the Farmers Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Service Act, 2020, and The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.

The government said the three laws will do away with middlemen, enabling farmers to sell their produce in the commercial markets.

However, protestors fear that this could lead to the government not buying produce at guaranteed prices, thereby disrupting their timely payments. The Delhi administration has allotted the Burari ground to the farmers for protesting.

While some hundred shifted there on Saturday morning after they were allowed to enter Delhi through Tikri border, thousand others are demanding that they be allowed to enter the heart of the city.

Farmers, mostly from Punjab and Haryana, embarked on 'Dilli Chalo' march to protest against the three new farm laws. The Tikri border with Haryana has been opened to enable the farmers to proceed to Nirankari Samagam Ground, marked for their protest by Delhi Police.

(ANI)