Delhi-bound Karnataka farmers’ arrest in Bhopal draws flak

Around 100 farmers from Karnataka were arrested on Tuesday in Madhya Pradesh while travelling by train to Delhi for a protest, triggering condemnation from the Karnataka chief minister and farmers.

Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) South India convener Shanthakumar said he was also with the group in the train and "the police stopped us at the Bhopal station, and some of our members were injured".

Government repression

Shanthakumar, who managed to reach Delhi, regretted that while the Centre was holding meetings with farmers, the government was trying to prevent farmers from joining the protest.

Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah blamed Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the arrests.

Siddaramaiah reacts

"I demand that the Madhya Pradesh government immediately release all the farmers from our state who have been arrested and allow them to participate in the protest in Delhi tomorrow,” he said on X.

“Although it is the government of Madhya Pradesh that has made the arrests, it is clear that the criminal brain behind this act is the central BJP government led by Prime Minister Modi," he alleged.

"Such repression might only lead more farmers to take to the streets, but the struggle of the sons and daughters of the soil will not cease.

CM blames Modi

“If the Central government truly cares about peace and order, it should immediately meet the demands of the farmers, rather than repressing and brutalizing them to silence," Siddaramaiah said.

"Looking at the current actions of the Modi government, it seems their main aim is to intimidate the farmers into submission," he added.

Seeking MSP

Several farmer associations, mostly from Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Punjab, have called for a march on February 13 to demand a law guaranteeing minimum support price for their produce.

The All India Kisan Sabha also condemned the arrests.

Kisan Sabha

"This authoritarian move is to try and scuttle the mobilisation for the 16th February Grameen Bharat Bandh and industrial/sectoral strike” called by the SKM and trade unions, it said.

"Many leaders are also restricted from travelling by confining them to their homes. Similar arrests and house arrests are being used in parts of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, and Rajasthan and a huge deployment of forces in these BJP-ruled states," the AIKS said.

(With agency inputs)