Page 6 - aruba-today-20210127

A6 WORLD NEWS
Wednesday 27 January 2021
Angry farmers storm India’s Red Fort in challenge to Modi

By SHEIKH SAALIQ More than half of farmers
Associated Press are in debt, with 20,638 kill-
NEW DELHI (AP) — Tens ing themselves in 2018 and
of thousands of farmers 2019, according to official
marched, rode horses and records.
drove tractors into India’s Devinder Sharma, an ag-
capital on Tuesday, break- riculture expert who has
ing through police barri- spent the last two decades
cades to storm the historic campaigning for income
Red Fort — a deeply sym- equality for Indian farmers,
bolic act that revealed the said they are not only pro-
scale of their challenge to testing the reforms but also
Prime Minister Narendra “challenging the entire
Modi’s government. economic design of the
As the country celebrated country.”
Republic Day, the long- “The anger that you see
running protest turned vio- is compounded anger,”
lent, with farmers waving Sharma said. “Inequality is
farm union and religious growing in India and farm-
flags from the ramparts of ers are becoming poorer.
the fort, where prime min- Policy planners have failed
isters annually hoist the to realize this and have
national flag on the coun- sucked the income from
try’s August independence the bottom to the top. The
holiday. Riot police fired farmers are only demand-
tear gas and water can- ing what is their right.”
nons and set up barricades Modi has tried to dismiss
in an attempt to prevent the farmers’ fears as un-
the protesters from reach- founded and has repeat-
ing the center of New edly accused opposition
Delhi, but the demonstra- parties of agitating them
tors broke through in many by spreading rumors.
places. Sikhs hoist a Nishan Sahib, a Sikh religious flag, on a minaret of the historic Red Fort monument in The protests overshad-
People watched in shock New Delhi, India, Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2021. owed Republic Day cel-
as the takeover of the fort, Associated Press ebrations, in which Modi
which was built in the 17th along with his family of five. the city and threatened to tests have erupted against oversaw a traditional lavish
century and served as the “We will not surrender.” besiege it if the farm laws laws some deem discrimi- parade along ceremonial
palace of Mughal emper- Leaders of the farmers said are not repealed. natory and his government Rajpath boulevard display-
ors, was shown live on hun- more than 10,000 tractors “We will do as we want to. has been questioned over ing the country’s military
dreds of news channels. joined the protest, and You cannot force your laws its response to the corona- power and cultural diver-
Protesters, some carrying thousands more people on the poor,” said Manjeet virus pandemic. sity. Authorities shut some
ceremonial swords, ropes marched on foot or rode Singh, a protesting farmer. In 2019, the year that wit- metro train stations, and
and sticks, overwhelmed on horseback while shout- The government insists nessed the first major pro- mobile internet service was
police. ing slogans against Modi. that the agriculture reform tests against his adminis- suspended in some parts
The farmers have been At some places, they were laws passed by Parliament tration, a diverse coalition of the capital, a frequent
staging largely peace- showered with flower pet- in September will benefit of groups rallied against tactic of the government
ful protests for nearly two als by residents who re- farmers and boost produc- a contentious new citi- to thwart protests.
months, demanding the corded the unprecedent- tion through private invest- zenship law that they said The parade was scaled
withdrawal of new laws ed protest on their phones. ment. But the farmers fear discriminated against Mus- back because of the pan-
that they say will favor Authorities used tear it will leave those who hold lims. demic. People wore masks
large corporate farms and gas, water cannons and small plots behind as big But the latest protests — and adhered to social dis-
devastate the earnings of placed large trucks and corporations win out. which began in northern tancing as police and mili-
smaller scale farmers. buses in roads to try to hold The government has of- states that are major agri- tary battalions marched
The contentious legislation back crowd, including fered to amend the laws cultural producers — have along the route displaying
has exacerbated existing rows upon rows of tractors, and suspend their imple- triggered a growing farmer their latest equipment.
resentment among farm- which shoved aside con- mentation for 18 months. rebellion that is fast spread- Republic Day marks the
ers, who have long been crete and steel barricades. But farmers insist they will ing to other parts of the anniversary of the adop-
seen as the heart and soul Police said one protester settle for nothing less than country, presenting a seri- tion of the country’s consti-
of India but often complain died after his tractor over- a complete repeal and ous challenge to Modi’s tution on Jan. 26, 1950.
of being ignored by the turned, but farmers said he plan to march on foot to government. Police said the protest-
government. As their pro- was shot. Several bloodied Parliament on Feb. 1. Agriculture supports more ing farmers broke away
test has gathered strength, protesters could be seen in Farmers are the latest than half of the country’s from the approved protest
it has rattled the govern- television footage. group to upset Modi’s im- 1.4 billion people. But the routes and resorted to “vio-
ment like never before Farmers many of them age of imperturbable economic clout of farm- lence and vandalism.”
since they form the most Sikhs from Punjab and Hary- dominance in Indian poli- ers has diminished over the The group that organized
influential voting bloc in In- ana states tried to march tics. last three decades. the protest, Samyukt Kisan
dia and are also crucial to into New Delhi in Novem- Since returning to power for Once producing a third Morcha, or United Farm-
its economy. ber but were stopped by a second term, Modi’s gov- of India’s gross domestic ers’ Front, blamed the
“We want to show Modi police. Since then, unfazed ernment has been rocked product, farmers now ac- violence on “anti-social
our strength,” said Satpal by the winter cold and fre- by several convulsions. The count for only 15% of the elements” who “infiltrated
Singh, a farmer who drove quent rains, they have hun- economy has tanked, so- country’s $2.9 trillion econ- an otherwise peaceful
into the capital on a tractor kered down at the edge of cial strife has widened, pro- omy. movement.”q