Haryana police using water cannons on farmers shows insensitivity: Badal

Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal strongly condemned the 'repression' unleashed by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Haryana against peacefully protesting farmers

Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal on Sunday strongly condemned the 'repression' unleashed by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Haryana against peacefully and democratically protesting farmers.

In a statement here, Badal said, "The response of Haryana's BJP government clearly showed that this party and its governments at the centre and in the states are full of hatred for the farmers and have no intention at all of resolving the crises created by the passage of three Acts on the marketing of the farmers' produce."

"It is shocking that no effort was made at all by those in power in Haryana to talk to the farmers who were protesting peacefully. Instead, they abused 'the might of the state' to provoke and suppress democratic protests," he added.

Badal said that the police repression including the use of water cannons showed how insensitive the BJP has become to the plight of the farmers.

"The Punjab unit of BJP is rubbing salt in farmers' wounds. I fail to understand this party's overall mindset against farmers. On the one hand, they are inviting farmers for talks while on the other they are provoking them through protests and provocative acts against them," he said.