Mumbai: Protesting farmers move towards Raj Bhavan, stopped by police

Farmers at Azad Maidan. Pic/ Bipin Kokate

Farmers from various districts of Maharashtra, who have gathered at Azad Maidan in Mumbai, said on Monday that they will give a memorandum to the state Governor against the Centre's proposed farm laws.

"We'll give a memorandum to Governor today. Our families have also come with us because if we lose farming, the entire family will come on the road," said a protester.

Acting on the Samyukta Kisan Morcha's (SKM) nationwide call for a demonstration between January 23 and 26, around 15,000 farmers from 21 districts in Maharashtra, under the banner of the All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS), took out a vehicular jatha (march) from Nashik to Mumbai. They left on Saturday and reached Azad Maidan on Sunday evening.

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• Maharashtra has never seen such a Governor before. He has the time to meet Kangana (Ranaut) but not the farmers. It was the moral responsibility of the Governor to come here and meet you, Sharad Pawar tells farmers.

• BEST bus route numbers 5, 14, 83, 84M and 86E have been diverted in South Mumbai since 1 pm due to farmers protest.

• Farmers start their march to Raj Bhavan (Governor's house) but have been stopped by the police.

• Elaborate security arrangements have been made as a large number of people come to South Mumbai for work. "We don't want people to face traffic congestion due to the morcha. There will be a smooth flow of traffic in south Mumbai," the official said.

• Joint Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Vishwas Nangre Patil said, "As per a Bombay High Court order, no morcha is allowed in south Mumbai and we are convincing representatives of the farmers to follow the court order."

• Police have made tight security arrangements and protesters are not allowed to march from south Mumbai to the Raj Bhavan, a senior police official said.

• In his speech at Azad Maidan, NCP leader Sharad Pawar slammed the Pm for not enquiring about famers who have been agitating against the farm laws months in the dead of winter.

• Sharad Pawar reaches Azad Maidan to join the protest, said sources

The farmers were greeted by numerous civil rights and workers' groups at Azad Maidan. All of them will be part of a three-day protest against the recently passed farm bills and labour laws. After leaving Nashik, the vehicle march halted at Ghatandevi, near Igatpuri, for the night, where the farmers slept on the ground near a temple. At 9 am on Sunday, thousands of farmers, including women from the AIDWA as well as numerous student organisations, assembled at Ghatandevi and marched down the 7 km stretch of Kasara Ghat, after which they resumed their vehicle jatha towards Azad Maidan.

The three-day protest at Azad Maidan from Sunday, has been organised by over a hundred organisations affiliated to the All India Kisan Sangharsh Coordination Committee (AIKSCC), Trade Unions Joint Action Committee, Struggle Committee of Mass Movements, Nation for Farmers and Hum Bharat Ke Log. All of them formed the Samyukta Shetkari Kamgar Morcha (SSKM), Maharashtra.

On Tuesday i.e. Republic Day, an almost 50,000 strong rally will march to Raj Bhavan to submit a memorandum to the Governor - a practice being undertaken by protesting farmers across the country. The agitation will conclude on January 26, Republic Day, with the hoisting of the national flag, the singing of the national anthem and a "pledge to make the current struggle of farmers and workers victorious at all costs."

(With inputs from agency)