Son of farmer killed in Lakhimpur violence says will contest next LS poll against Ajay Mishra Teni
Lakhimpur Kheri (UP), Feb 5: The son of a farmer who was killed in Lakhimpur Kheri incident wants to settle scores with union minister Ajay Mishra Teni in the political field.
Farmer Nachhatar Singh's elder son Jagdeep Singh said he wants to contest against Teni in the 2024 general election.
He said he has declined offers of the Samajwadi Party and the Congress to fight current assembly polls, and has instead asked them to field him in the Lok Sabha polls.
Teni's son Ashish Mishra has been declared the main accused in the chargesheet filed by Special Investigation (SIT) in the incident that took place on October 3 last year.
Mishra is currently in jail in connection with the matter.
In the incident that shocked the nation, four farmers, including Nachhatar Singh, were crushed to death under the wheels of a convoy of cars, including the one belonging to the Minister.
Four others, including a journalist, were also killed when the convoy ran over a group of farmers demonstrating against the visit of deputy chief minister Keshav Prasad Maurya to Teni's native place for a programme.
Jagdeep Singh, a resident of Namdar Purwa village, told PTI that he was offered ticket from Dhaurahara assembly segment in Lakhimpur Kheri district, but he did not accept it.
"SP and Congress insisted that I should contest from Dhaurahara seat but I told them that I would not fight a small battle. Give me a ticket for Lok Sabha elections in 2024. I will fight directly against Teni. If I have to fight, I will fight it properly," he said.
The 31-year-old said no one in his family has a political background.
"I am not a supporter of anyone including SP, BSP, and Congress. At present we are standing with farmer leader Tejinder Singh Virk in the elections.
He is fighting our battle as well. Wherever he is fighting from, we will stand with him," he said.
Virk was among those injured in the violence. Recently he was seen with Akhilesh Yadav at a press conference in Lucknow.
Jagdeep thanked the opposition parties and said if there was no opposition, then the Tikoniya incident would have been shown as an accident.
"If the opposition had not stood up and there was no pressure from the farmers' union, no action would have taken place in this matter," he said.
He said Teni was not removed by the party because of Brahmin vote bank.
"Teni not being removed from the post of Union Minister of State for Home is a very big election issue. The government is not removing Teni out of fear of losing Brahmin votes.
As long as he remains in the post of Minister of State for Home, justice cannot be done to us," Jagdeep said.
Teni is a second term BJP MP from Kheri.
Asked how big an issue the Tikoniya incident is in terms of assembly elections, Jagdeep said, "Only time will tell, but it is certain that if people do not stand united against this incident in the elections, then the farmers will be crushed under the jeep. Those with such a mentality will be encouraged."
Out of the four deceased farmers, Nachhatar Singh of Dhaurhara, and Lovepreet Singh, a resident of Palia, belonged to Lakhimpur Kheri district.
The other two farmers hailed from neighbouring Bahraich.
Sikhs of the area are angry in particular with the minister over the incident.
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Iran Foreign Minister Araghchi begins 3-day India visit
New Delhi (PTI): Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi began a three-day official visit to India on Wednesday, marking the first high-level diplomatic engagement from Tehran since the outbreak of the US-Israel war with Iran more than two months ago.
Araghchi is visiting India primarily to attend a two-day meeting of BRICS foreign ministers beginning Thursday.
The Iranian foreign minister is set to hold wide-ranging bilateral talks with his Indian counterpart S Jaishankar, focusing on the escalating crisis in West Asia.
The situation surrounding the Strait of Hormuz is expected to feature prominently. The Indian side is likely to press for the safe passage of remaining merchant vessels through the strategic waterway, according to people familiar with the matter.
Araghchi and other foreign ministers of the BRICS member states are scheduled to call on Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday.
"A very warm welcome to Foreign Minister of Iran, Seyed Abbas Araghchi, on his arrival in New Delhi for the BRICS Foreign Ministers' Meeting," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on 'X'.
The escalating crisis in West Asia and its impact on the global energy supply chain are expected to dominate deliberations at the BRICS foreign ministers' meeting.
India, as the chair of BRICS, is hosting the conclave of the foreign ministers ahead of the annual summit of the grouping in September.
It will be interesting to see if the foreign ministerial conclave manages to produce a consensus statement on the conflict in West Asia.
Sharp differences among the member states over the US-Israel war on Iran stalled India's efforts to build a consensus position on the conflict during a meeting of the grouping's deputy foreign ministers and special envoys on Middle East and North America last month.
No consensus statement on the conflict could be reached largely due to differences between the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Iran. The two neighbouring countries have sparred in recent weeks over Iran's alleged attacks on energy infrastructure in the UAE.
"The active presence of the Islamic Republic of Iran in mechanisms such as BRICS represents a strategic choice to strengthen genuine multilateralism, expand equitable cooperation, and participate in shaping a more just order in international relations," Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said on 'X'.
"The BRICS foreign ministers' meeting in New Delhi can be an important opportunity for dialogue on the future of Global South cooperation, reforming international economic governance, developing independent trade, strengthening financial and banking ties, and reducing countries' dependence on discriminatory and unilateral mechanisms," he said.
Gharibabadi said Iran, with its geopolitical, energy, transit, scientific, and human capacities, can play an effective role in the BRICS agenda for balanced development, economic security, regional connectivity, and amplifying the voice of independent countries.
The Iranian deputy foreign minister is in New Delhi for the BRICS meeting.
"In this path, opposition to America's unilateral coercive measures and their illegal and anti-development effects is an inseparable part of defending economic justice and the rights of nations to development," he said.
After the West Asia conflict escalated, Iran urged India, as the current BRICS chair, to leverage its "independent role" to halt the US-Israel hostilities against Iran.
Global oil and gas prices have surged after Iran virtually blocked the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow shipping lane between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman that handles roughly 20 per cent of global oil and LNG (liquefied natural gas).
BRICS, originally comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, expanded in 2024 to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, and the UAE, with Indonesia joining in 2025.
It has emerged as an influential grouping as it brings together 11 major emerging economies of the world, representing around 49.5 per cent of the global population, around 40 per cent of the global GDP and around 26 per cent of the global trade.
The BRICS foreign ministers held their last meeting on the margins of the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA 80) in September 2025.
