The BJP-led Union government may have withdrawn the three farm laws against which farmers agitated for over a year, but the churn that the movement has brought out in the poll-bound Uttar Pradesh is likely to have political ramifications.
In particular, the unity forged between Jats and Muslims, who had shared a strained relationship after the 2013 Muzzafarnagar riots, is likely to hurt the electoral prospects of the BJP, particularly in western UP.
Even though the farm laws have been repealed, farmers’ unions have vowed to take on the BJP politically in the ensuing assembly elections.
Against this backdrop, The Wire‘s Arfa Khanum Sherwani speaks to Naresh Tikait, president of the Bharatiya Kisan Union, to understand farmers’ issues, the impact of the farmers’ agitation on the UP politics, among several issues.
The Wire‘s @khanumarfa speaks to Naresh Tikait, president of the Bharatiya Kisan Union, to understand farmers’ issues, the impact of the farmers’ agitation on UP politics and the state’s assembly elections.