'4 lakh tractors, 25 lakh farmers on standby': Rakesh Tikait warns govt ahead of protests

Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader and spokesperson Rakesh Tikait on Thursday has said that four lakh tractors are on standby in order to protest. This comes days after Rakesh Tikait had earlier called for intensifying the farmers' protest against the three farm laws of the Centre. Tikait had tweeted and said that all farmers will be protesting outside the Raj Bhavan on June 26. He had asked the farmers 'to be ready with the tractors'.

'Four lakh tractors on standby'

Taking to Twitter on Thursday, the BKU leader warned that four lakh tractors are on standby that will protests against the three farm laws. In addition, he also added that 25 lakh farmers are also present to protest. Firing a warning to the Centre, Rakesh Tikait said that 26th comes on every month.

Farmer protests against three laws

The agitating farmers have been protesting against the Centre's three laws since November, last year, demanding that the Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020; Farmers' (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020; and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020 be rolled back and a new law made to guarantee minimum support price for crops. However, multiple rounds of talks between the Centre and farmer unions have not reached a solution. The situation remains at a stalemate. 

The protests escalated after the agitating farmers broke down barricades and entered Delhi which led to a massive clash between protesters and the police. The farmers then hoisted the SKM flag at the Red Flag on Republic Day. After the violence witnessed on Republic Day, Delhi police sealed the borders of the national capital by cementing nails near barricades, deploying additional troops, adding barbed wires, etc at Ghazipur and Tikri borders, blocking complete access to the roads. The protests had cooled down due to the devastating second wave of COVID-19.