West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday launched a scathing attack on the BJP over the ongoing farmers' protest, accusing them of governing like "Ravan" and surpassing all moral boundaries and showing a blatant disregard for "Lakshman Rekhas." Banerjee's remarks, delivered in the assembly, included her decision to postpone a scheduled visit to Punjab as an expression of solidarity with the protesting farmers.

"Farmers are suffering, the entire country is burning. The BJP is laughing and the poor are being tortured. This is what BJP does. But the BJP is not bothered. It is the government of Ravan, which has crossed all Lakshman Rekhas," Banerjee declared.

She said that she spoke with Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, and has decided to defer the Punjab visit in favour of supporting the farmers' agitation in Punjab, Haryana, and Delhi.

Farmers leader Rakesh Tikait speaks on Bharat Bandh, says 'Farmers won't go the farms'. He further said,  “We have spoken about 'gramin bharat bandh' - that farmers do not go to their farms tomorrow. This will send a big message tomorrow...This agitation has a new ideology, a new method. Highways will not be shut. But meetings will continue at our meeting points and we will take decisions there. Monthly panchayat will take place in sisauli on 17th february. We do have the demand on msp but a strategy will have to be built on incidents that are taking place in punjab and haryana - we hope for this.. We have told not to gather as a crowd for it. As far as the bandh is concerned, we have urged people to participate voluntarily.”

Under the aegis of Bharatiya Kisan Parishad, continuous strike is going on at Noida Authority Sector 6 and NTPC Sector 24 Noida from 11th December and 18th December.
In this sequence, the United Front has announced Bharat Bandh tomorrow. According to his post yesterday, the Bharatiya Kisan Parishad also supports this campaign of the United Front, and all the farmer friends will gather at Sector 24 Noida at 10:00 am and work from there to take the Bharat Bandh campaign forward.

 Three Union ministers began their third round of talks with the leaders of protesting farmer unions in Chandigarh Thursday evening, amid a standoff between the protesters and security personnel at two points on the Punjab-Haryana border.

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann also joined the meeting at the Mahatma Gandhi State Institute of Public Administration in Sector 26.

Union Agriculture and Farmer Welfare Minister Arjun Munda, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai are representing the central government in the meeting over farmer unions' various demands, including a law guaranteeing Minimum Support Price (MSP) for crops.

Trinamool Congress member in the Lok Sabha, Mahua Moitra, who is facing an inquiry into allegations of cash-for-query, has been summoned by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on February 19. 

Special PMLA court in Ranchi sends Former Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren to Judicial custody.

On farmers' protest, Additional Solicitor General of India, Satya Pal Jai, representing the Centre says, "Two PILs have been filed in Punjab & Haryana High Court. We told the court that Govt of India is ready for talks with farmer representatives and there will be a meeting between farmers and 2-3 Union ministers in Chandigarh. We trust that a positive outcome will come out of the meeting. We informed the court that a petitioner has written to the UN seeking international intervention in the matter. We told the court that approaching SC, HC is the right of every person but going against the country and talking about the issue internationally is wrong. The court told the petitioner to withdraw his petition...Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh UT have filed status reports before the court. Both the states stated before court that the situation is tense but it is under control. The next hearing in the case will be on 20th February."

On farmers' protest, farmer leader Gurnam Singh Charuni says, " Three decisions were taken today, first one is, we will keep Haryana toll free for 3 hours tomorrow, from 12pm-3pm...day after tomorrow, there will be a tractor parade in every Tehsil, from 12 pm...on 18th February, there will be a joint meeting of all farmers' and labour organisations...further decisions will be taken in that meeting..."

Barricades have been erected in Central Delhi, leading to Parliament and other significant sites, while Delhi Police is on high alert. The Haryana Police have stopped protesting farmers near Ambala at the Shambhu border between Punjab and Haryana.

To stop farmers from accessing the capital, Delhi Police has installed many levels of barriers, barbed wire, and concrete blocks at the borders of Tikri and Singhu.

Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Thursday said that the farmers demands are with the Centre and not from the Haryana government. The Chief Minister added that he cannot compromise on the security of the people living in Haryana. He added that in the last farmers protest, the security of the people loving in Haryana was impacted. 

He further stated that He had no issue if the farmers were moving to Delhi.  

The farmers are protesting at the Ladowal Toll Plaza Delhi-Amritsar National Highway. The farmers have also been protesting at Dappar toll plaza located on Chandigarh- Delhi Highway. 

Leaders of the farmers claimed that throughout this time, the Central Government was pushing the farmers and stopping them, treating them as though they were leaving for another country. In the process, he also criticized the Punjabi government

Punjab: Protesters from Rajpura, Patiala are sitting on rail tracks and blocking trains at Rajpura Railway Station. 

According to an official, the Delhi Police has ordered around 30,000 tear gas shells in anticipation of stopping farmers from visiting the nation's capital as part of their "Dilli Chalo" protest.

The BJP on Wednesday announced another list of Rajya Sabha candidates nominating railways minister Ashwini Vaishnaw from Odisha. 

The BJD said it would back Vaishnaw in the election to be held on February 27.

Vaishnaw was elected to the Rajya Sabha in 2019 with the help of the BJD. 

In the year 2019 too, BJD did not announce the name of a third candidate - its two candidates are Debashish Samantaray and Subhasish Khuntia -- it was rumoured that Vaishnaw would get re-elected to the Rajya Sabha and the BJD would back.

In run up to Rajya Sabha elections 2024, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Chief Jagat Prakash Nadda will file nomination from Gujarat. On February 14, Congress High Command Sonia Gandhi filed her nomination from Rajasthan. 

According to the reports, farmers' associations have zeroed in on 10 protest sites for the 'rail roko' protest  in which BKU Ugrahan and BKU Dakaunda will collaborate. More locations are likely to be added in the Rail Roko Protest. 

Rail Roko Protests locations include Rajpura, Sunam, Jethuke village in Bathinda, Moga, Mansa, Malaut, Valla Railway Crossing in Maritsar, Barnala, Sangrur, Budhlada have been selected as the ‘rail roko’ protest locations. 
 

A key meet is to be held between a team of Union Ministers and farmer leaders on Thursday evening, Samyukat Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal told the mediapersons. 

The team of Union Ministers comprises of Arjun Munda, Piyush Goyal, and Nityanand Rai. This will be the third meeting between Union Ministers and Farmers leaders.