Children don't want to take up farming seeing our plight: Farmers
New Delhi: Several farmers, who took part at a protest here Friday rued that their children do not want to take up farming seeing their parents plight, as protestors raised slogans to protect "farming legacy".
Dubbed as the largest farmers' protest and congregation in Delhi, around 35,000 farmers, from across India, converged at the Parliament Street police station Thursday after their march was stopped by the administration.
They are in the national capital to press for their demands, including debt relief and remunerative prices for their produce.
Ramaswami Sella Perumal, a farmer from Tamil Nadu, who had undertaken a 36-hour long journey, and was wearing two skulls of his relative who had allegedly committed suicide, said he has two children, who are studying.
"They do not want to become farmers. They see what kind of difficulties we are facing. Many of our farmers have committed suicide. It is saddening that our children do not want to take up something that runs in our family," Perumal said, as he broke into tears.
Mukut Singh, a farmer leader from Uttar Pardesh concurred with Perumal and said their children want to gain good education and a private job.
"Our children want to study well and then get a good job. Even statistics say 40 per cent of farmers have given up farming and our children obviously do not want to take it up because they see how we are fighting for our rights," he said.
A farmer leader from Haryana, Phool Singh Sheokand, said, "Our children are ready to sit in a shop and earn Rs 5000 but they do not want to become farmers. This sentiment is there among the children of many farmers and they cannot be blamed."
Farmer leader BM Singh also spoke about the issue on the stage and even gave the slogan, 'We have to bring our children into farming and ensure that the farming legacy does not die'.
The farmers, social activists and political leaders slammed the Union government alleging that it has not implemented a "single major initiative" for farmers int he past four and half years.
Here they were joined by various political leaders including Congress President Rahul Gandhi, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Samajwadi Party leader Dharmendra Yadav, CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury, CPI leader S Sudhakar Reddy, AAP MP Sanjay Singh and former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah apart from Gandhi.
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Counting for Bagalkot, Davanagere South bypolls on May 4 amid tight security
Bengaluru (PTI): Counting of votes for bypolls to two assembly constituencies in Karnataka -- Bagalkot and Davanagere South -- will be held on May 4, amid tight security, election officials said Sunday.
The by-elections were held on April 9.
The bypolls were necessitated by the deaths of senior Congress MLAs H Y Meti (Bagalkot) and Shamanur Shivashankarappa (Davanagere South).
Although the outcome of these by-elections is unlikely to have an immediate impact on state politics, the contest is seen as a matter of prestige for both the ruling Congress and the opposition BJP.
While the Congress faces the challenge of retaining both seats, the BJP aims to wrest them and deliver a setback to the ruling party, which is currently witnessing an "internal power struggle" over leadership.
There has been speculation that a decision on leadership change and the much-awaited cabinet reshuffle is likely after the May 4 results.
According to the Election Commission, the voter turnout in Bagalkot was 68.74 per cent, and it was 68.43 per cent in Davanagere South.
Poll officials said the counting of votes would begin at 8 am, and the clear picture may emerge by mid day.
Adequate security arrangements have been made for the smooth conduct of the counting and to ensure that no untoward incidents happen during or after the declaration of results, according to top police officials.
Preparations have been completed at the University of Horticultural Sciences in Bagalkot and DRR School at Davanagere for counting of votes.
According to election officials, 14 tables each have been set for vote counting on EVMs at counting centres both in Bagalkot and Davanagere South assembly segments, where nine and 25 candidates were in the fray respectively.
The BJP fielded former MLA and 2023 defeated candidate Veerabhadrayya Charantimath from Bagalkot, and a fresh face, Srinivas T Dasakariyappa, from Davanagere South.
The Congress gave tickets to family members of the late legislators in both constituencies. Bagalkot candidate Umesh Meti is the son of H Y Meti, while Samarth Mallikarjun from Davanagere South is the grandson of Shamanur Shivashankarappa.
Samarth's father, S S Mallikarjun, is a minister in the Siddaramaiah-led Cabinet and in charge of Davanagere district, while his mother, Prabha Mallikarjun, is a Member of Parliament from the region.
The BJP is looking to make gains in the bypolls and energise its cadre ahead of the 2028 Assembly elections. For the Congress, retaining both seats is crucial, as a loss could be seen as a negative verdict on the performance of the Siddaramaiah-led government.
Muslim disgruntlement appears to be a concern for the Congress in Davanagere South. With 14 of the 25 candidates in the fray belonging to the community, there are apprehensions within the party about a split in votes, which could benefit the BJP.
Given its significant presence in the constituency, the Muslim community strongly demanded the Congress ticket for Davanagere South. However, the party fielded late MLA Shivashankarappa's grandson Samarth. This is said to have caused disgruntlement among the community and Muslim leaders within Congress.
Although the Congress persuaded a rebel candidate Sadiq Pailwan to withdraw, he remained in the fray as the move came after the deadline for withdrawal of nominations.
The Congress, after the polls, even took action against some Muslim leaders of the party following allegations of "internal conspiracy" to defeat the candidate in Davanagere South. The action included MLC K Abdul Jabbar being suspended from primary membership and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah relieving another MLC, Naseer Ahmed, from the post of CM's political secretary.
Speculation are rife that Housing Minister B Z Zameer Ahmed Khan may also face disciplinary measures during the next cabinet reshuffle. So, the Davanagere South results are crucial for Khan as well.
Following these actions, some Muslim clerics and leaders had openly warned the grand old party.
In Bagalkot too, the Congress faced initial dissidence, with other members of Meti's family seeking the ticket. However, Siddaramaiah's intervention helped resolve differences to an extent, and they campaigned together.
The BJP, in contrast, saw little dissidence over candidate selection, with its leaders campaigning in unity.
Leaders of Congress and the BJP have expressed confidence about their parties winning both the seats.
In the 2023 Assembly elections, H Y Meti defeated BJP's Charantimath by a margin of 5,878 votes in Bagalkot, while Shivashankarappa defeated BJP's B G Ajay Kumar by 27,888 votes in Davanagere South.
