Bharat Bandh: BJP scared of farmers and Kejriwal, says deputy CM Manish Sisodia

Delhi’s deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia said on Tuesday the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is perplexed and scared by farmers and chief minister Arvind Kejriwal as it thinks he might take to the streets in favour of the agitating agriculturists’ call for the Bharat Bandh.

“The BJP is perplexed by the farmers and CM Kejriwal. They are perplexed after he went to meet the farmers at Singhu border. He has been put under house arrest ever since he returned, his house has been barricaded. Entry and exit of people are not being allowed,” Sisodia told news agency ANI. “The BJP is scared that the chief minister will take to the streets in favour of Bharat Bandh and speak for farmers. They don’t say anything to Captain Amarinder Singh because the two are colluding to call the farmers anti-nationals,” he said referring to the Punjab chief minister.

Earlier in the day, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) had also alleged in a tweet that the Delhi Police, on the directions of the central government, “has almost“ put Kejriwal under house arrest ever since he returned from Singhu border after meeting the protesting farmers. The Delhi Police, however, categorically denied the allegations and said it is “general deployment” and that the CM’s movement has not been barred in any way.

“The Delhi Police will intervene in case of apprehension of breach of peace or any effort is made to block the movement of any critical leader or any person. These claims are totally baseless and unfounded. There is absolutely no restriction whatsoever. The chief minister has been meeting his usual engagements and has been moving out of his residence. There is adequate security in the area to maintain peace and to prevent an untoward incident,” Satish Golchha, Delhi Police’s special commissioner, said.

The four-hour Bharat Bandh or the nationwide strike started on Tuesday at 11am. Several political parties such as the Congress, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Trinamool Congress (TMC), Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), Shiv Sena, Left parties and many others have extended their support to the farmers ‘call for the strike.

The farmer unions are observing the strike against the three newly-enacted farm laws - Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.

The Centre’s offer to amend the contentious laws failed to cut ice with farmer groups during the fifth round of talks on December 5. Union agriculture minister Narendra Singh Tomar has called another meeting on December 9.