Tamil Nadu Farmers Climb Mobile Tower In Delhi; Carry Skulls With Them

New Delhi: Farmers from Tamil Nadu who have been protesting at the Jantar Mantar in Delhi, climbed atop a mobile tower on Wednesday. About 200 farmers have gathered in the national capital with their ploughs and flags to protest against the central government on the issues of linking rivers and the low prices of crops, India Today reported.

The farmers, armed with ploughs and flags also brought skulls and bones which they claim belong to farmers who have taken their own lives due to the dire situation they face, Times of India reported.

“During the 2019 elections, the Prime Minister had announced that he would double the profits of crops and link rivers,” said the National South Indian River Interlinking Farmer Association, led by its president Ayyakannu in a television interview.  The farmers stated that they were not given permission to protest earlier and the police stopped them, “We are living in a democratic country and we have the right to protest, but the police stopped us,” a farmer leader was quoted as saying. Later, the court gave them permission to protest.

“We demand two-time profitable prices of the crops, pension of Rs 5,000 to farmers, individual insurance and also interlinking of all the farmers in India,” a farmer was quoted as saying by TOI.

The farmers stated that if the government does not listen to their demands, they will contest elections against the Prime Minister in Varanasi, the report added.