Uttar Pradesh: 'Rail Roko' Agitation Against Centre's Agri Laws Largely Peaceful

Farmers protested in Chitrakoot, Hamipur, Mahoba, Lalitpur, Fatehpur, Amethi and other districts of the state, demanding the repeal of the three contentious laws.

(Image: PTI)

Lucknow: The 'rail roko' (rail blockade) call by farmer unions protesting the Centre's three agriculture laws on Thursday remained peaceful and did not have much impact in Uttar Pradesh with farmers organising token protests near railway tracks and stations in the state.

Farmers protested in Chitrakoot, Hamipur, Mahoba, Lalitpur, Fatehpur, Amethi and other districts of the state, demanding the repeal of the three contentious laws. In Banda, farmers squatted on a railway track for some time and left after giving a memorandum addressed to the President regarding their demands, Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) Mahendra Pratap Singh Chauhan said.

In Chitrakoot, 100 famers were detained while they tried to stop the rail movement, ASP Shailendra Kumar Rai said. All the detained farmers were taken to the police lines and later they were set free, he added.

National President, Bundelkhand Kisan Union, Vimal Kumar Sharma claimed that a group of about 150 farmers restricted the train movement at district headquarters for about two hours, demanding that the agri laws be taken back. He claimed that farmers had heated arguments with police when the latter asked them to leave the track.

In Mahoba, farmers could not hold a protest due to tight security arrangements, ASP Rajendra Kumar Gautam said. In Hamirpur too, farmers were not allowed to disturb train movement, police said. Congress' Hamirpur president Neelam Nishad said the party oraganised a march to protest against the farm laws and the rising petrol and diesel prices.

In Lalitpur, a group of farmers hold a panchyat near a rail track and later dispersed off peacefully, Sub District Magistrate Avinash Tripathi said. In Fatehpur, farmers squatted on Kanspur and Malwan railway crossings and held meetings and later submitted a memorandum, Superintendent of Police Satpal Antil said.

In Amethi, farmers led by their leader Rita Singh held protests at the district headquarters and raised slogans against the prime minister, MP Smriti Irani and other BJP leaders. They also took out a march towards the railway station, demanding the rollback of the agri laws.

The Sanyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella body of farmer unions spearheading the farmers' protest, last week had announced the rail blockade across the country on Thursday against the Centre's farm laws.