The fierce tug-of-war led to a sit-in by the farmer leaders who demanded the effigy to be returned.
A protest turned into a tug-of-war after police personnel in Uttar Pradesh’s Hapur today snatched an effigy of Kangana Ranaut which was brought to protest against the Mandi MP’s statement against farmers. Members of the Joint Kisan Morcha of Bharatiya Kisan Union (Lokhit) wanted to burn the effigy of Kangana Ranaut to protest against her statement.
The cops snatched the effigy from their car which led to a tug-of-war resulting in chaotic scenes on the road with cops with lathis surrounding the protesters and an officer pushing the opponent, while the other snatched it and ran away, a video showed.
This led to a sit-in by the farmer leaders who demanded the effigy to be returned. The protest led to a traffic jam on the Delhi-Lucknow road in Hapur.
“We wanted to burn the effigy peacefully but the police came and took it from our car. If they wanted to, they could’ve snatched it from our hand, in front of us. We believe in the rule of law, the Constitution…Until we get the effigy back, we will continue the sit-in protest,” Harish Hoon, national spokesperson of Bharatiya Kisan Union Lokhit.
He said that the comments made by Ms Ranaut on farmers are very shameful…We demand that a case be registered against the MP.
The union leaders brought another effigy to protest.
Ms Ranaut was reprimanded by the BJP leadership after her remarks on the farmers’ protest triggered controversy. A clarification accompanied the reproof – Kangana Ranaut’s comments do not represent the party’s views, the BJP declared.
The BJP’s disapproval came a day after the 38-year-old BJP MP suggested that the farmers’ protest could have led to a Bangladesh-like crisis in India if not for the strong steps taken by the government.
“Kangana Ranaut is not authorised to speak on policy matters on behalf of the party and has not been given permission to do so. The BJP has directed Ms Ranaut to refrain from making such statements in the future,” the BJP said in a statement.
Ms Ranaut, known for her provocative remarks, has been a strong critic of the farmers’ protest against the now-repealed three farm laws.