‘Make Volunteers Do Tit-For-Tat’: Khattar’s Speech To BJP Kisan Morcha Triggers Row, Congress Slams Haryana CM

Khattar said the problem is not much in south Haryana, adding it is limited to the state’s northern and western districts.

Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar | File Image

New Delhi: Referring to the impact of the ongoing farmers’ agitation, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Sunday talked about “tit for tat” during a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Kisan Morcha meeting here when he told the gathering to form groups of 500 to 1,000 and be prepared to even go to jail.

Khattar said the problem is not much in south Haryana, adding it is limited to the state’s northern and western districts.

READ: Five Farmers Die, Several Injured After Violence Erupts In UP’s Lakhimpur Kheri. Congress Corners Modi Govt

“Form groups of 500, 700, 1,000 people and make them volunteers. And then at every place, ‘sathe sathyam samacharet’. What does it mean -- it means tit for tat,” Khattar said, PTI reported.

“Do not worry...when you remain there (in jail) for a month, three months or six months, you will become big leaders. Your names will be etched in history,” he added.

A video clip of the Haryana Chief Minister’s comments went viral on social media following which the Opposition alleged that he told the BJP supporters to pick up sticks against the protesting farmers.

#WATCH | "In each district of north & west Haryana, you should raise volunteer groups of 700-1000 farmers at different places & use tit for tat action against them (protesting farmers). Pick up sticks...," says Haryana CM ML Khattar while addressing state unit of BJP Kisan Morcha pic.twitter.com/UC3ukBiUAK

— ANI (@ANI) October 3, 2021

The Congress lashed out at Khattar over his remarks.

“If the chief minister of the state talks about spreading violence, breaking the society and destroying law and order, then the rule of law and the Constitution cannot run in the state. Today, the BJP's anti-farmer conspiracy got busted. The time has come for showing the door to such an anarchic government,” Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala tweeted in Hindi.

 “Your (Khattar's) guru mantra asking BJP supporters to attack the agitating farmers with sticks, go to jail and become leaders from there will never be successful. This call to spread anarchy at an open programme after taking oath of the Constitution is treason. Seems you also have the nod of Modi-Naddaji in this,” he wrote on the micro-blogging platform.