The countrywide protest against the new farm laws saw agitation in BJP-ruled Karnataka, where thousands of farmers agitated against the government on Monday. Besides amendments to the APMC (Agricultural Produce Market Committees) Act, they also protested against the changes to the land acquisition act — which makes it easier for non-farmers to buy agricultural land.
At noon, hundreds of farmers protested in front of the Town Hall in Bengaluru and several others blocked roads till the police asked them to move. However, the statewide strike called by the farmers wasn’t a success and transport was not really affected.
JD(S) workers took out a bike rally in Shivamogga, but they were stopped by the police at the Lakshmi Theater circle.
Karnataka Congress chief DK Shivakumar, state in-charge Randeep Surjewala and leader Siddaramaiah were protesting at the party office.
“They are lying to farmers. Narendra Modi is a liar and to being what he says into practice in this state, Yediyurappa is also repeating the lie. This is all against farmers,” said K Chandrashekhar, the chief of Farmer’s Federation of Karnataka as quoted by NDTV.
“One thing is very clear, both Narendra Modi and BS Yediyurappa are harmful for agriculture,” said Randeep Surjewala of the Congress.
“The farmers are agitating. This anti-farmer, anti-farm labour government continues to diabolically suppress and stifle the voice of the farmer. We stand united with the farmer until the land reform bill and the APMC Act are withdrawn, our struggle will continue,” he added.
Workers of Congress, Janata Dal (Secular) and Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) were detained in Kodagu on Monday after they protested against the agriculture sector reform laws.
The police have detained the workers who were protesting in Madikeri of Kodagu district amid the statewide protest in Karnataka. Various farmer’s organisations have also called a statewide bandh against the laws, ANI reported.Â
Source: dnaindia.com