New Delhi, October 2: On the birth anniversaries of Mahatma Gandhi and Lal Bahadur Shashtri, the two iconic leaders who hailed farmers, the Delhi Police used water cannons, tear gas and lathis to stop thousands of peasants from entering the national capital. Amid violent clashes between agitating farmers and the police, a photojournalist captured a moment that has become a new face of farmers' struggle in the country.
A picture clicked by PTI news agency's Ravi Choudhary is going viral on social media. The image shows a farmer with a lathi going head to head with police personnel. The picture of the farmer is being showcased as the farmers' resistance against the Modi government. The identity of the farmer is not known yet. However, his picture has drawn the attention of many towards the distress of those who are the backbone of the country's economy. Kisan Kranti Yatra: Delhi Police Blames Agitating Farmers For Violence, Protests to Continue.
"This pic will haunt for BJP for decades (sic)," wrote a person on Twitter while sharing the symbolic image. "When you go to vote in 2019, remember this photo," said another netizen on Facebook. Here are the some tweets and Facebook posts:
Picture of the day! By the brilliant Ravi Choudhary (@choudharyview )#KisanKrantiYatra pic.twitter.com/TFcKMfQeDE
— Daksh Panwar (@Daksh280) October 2, 2018
Solidarity with the Indian farmers defying police violence at Delhi border. Laal Salam#Kisankrantiyatra pic.twitter.com/6pmhFS95XM
— Auwn Gurmani (@auwn_) October 2, 2018
This photo will ever remain etched in history. History is full of peasant movements, peasants fighting against any govt apathy. Peasant is otherwise a tolerant creature. #GandhiJayanti #BKU #KisanKrantiYatra pic.twitter.com/D1V810P9VP
— Nirmesh Singh (@bulandnirmesh) October 2, 2018
What a brave man
this pic will haunt for BJP for decades. #KisanKrantiYatra pic.twitter.com/9gZ8XdQWPx
— Satish Kumar (@satishkumar1012) October 2, 2018
Led by the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU), thousands of farmers on their way to Kisan Ghat in the national capital were stopped at the Delhi border by the police. According to the Delhi Police, the agitating farmers tried to break the barricades with thier tractors, forcing cops to use water cannons and tear gas to disperse them. Defending the crackdown, the police said the farmers pelted stones at cops.
The farmers' demands include complete loan waiver, revoking ban on 10 year old tractors in the National Capital Region, reduction in electricity tariff, implementation of the recommendations of the M.S. Swaminathan Commission on remunerative prices and payment of sugarcane arrears among others.
The protesters started their 10-day march from Haridwar in Uttarakhand led by the BKU and on Tuesday they reached the Uttar Pradesh-Delhi border.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 02, 2018 07:50 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).