BJP leader exhorts people to beat dishonest farmers

Bhopal: A ruling BJP leader here has exhorted people to thrash farmers after calling them as “dishonest”, leaving the party leadership red faced.

In a damage control exercise, state BJP president Rakesh Singh on Saturday expelled general secretary of state farmers’ wing Hukum Singh Anjan from the party for his outbursts against the tillers, saying “persons with such dirty mindset have no place in the BJP”.

The BJP leadership here took prompt action in the matter fearing that Mr Anjan’s outburst against farmers might revive the unrest in the state.

Incidentally, the BJP leader’s statement came ahead of proposed 10-day protest by farmers’ outfits in MP from June 1.

Congress president Rahul Gandhi was scheduled to attend the first death anniversary of six farmers slain in police firing in Mandsaur in MP on June 6 last year.

He was scheduled to address a farmers’ rally at Mandsaur on June 6 on the occasion and blow the  for the forthcoming assembly elections in the state, due in November this year, for his party.

Action against Mr Anjani by the party followed surfacing of a video clip in which he was heard denigrating farmers.

In the video clip that went viral on Saturday, he was heard calling the farmers as “dishonest” and asking the party members to beat them.

“Those who never raised garlic crop have registered themselves as farmers in the government records” to usurp the benefits given to farmers by the state government, he was heard saying in the video.

Describing the state BJP government as “pro-farmer”, Mr Singh said that the chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has provided incentives and other benefits such as free electricity and subsidised fertilisers and seeds to them to ensure their economic growth.