AGRA: Farmers' leader and Bhartiya Kisan Union national spokesperson Rakesh Tikait said the "Hindu-Muslim and Jinnah rhetoric will be kept alive in the state only till the assembly elections and cautioned his supporters and farmers "not to be influenced by such divisive statements, meant only for political gains".
Tikait, who was in Aligarh on Sunday, said the "propaganda" is "only for two and half months". He added: "People should be wary of the statements given by the leaders from the 'Sarkari manch'. Though I cannot predict which party will form the next government, people will certainly not vote for the ruling party."
This comes days after his brother and BKU chief Naresh Tikait appealed to his supporters and khaps of western UP to ensure victory for the SP-RLD alliance. However, he later retracted his statement and said he had made a "mistake" in giving such a call publicly.
Tikait said in Aligarh that "farmers are frustrated with the government as they are being forced to sell their crops at half of its price". He added that they are fully conscious of the importance of their choice in the forthcoming assembly elections and do not need any prompting.
"The 13 months of training in Delhi at the time of the kisan movement against the government's three contentious farm laws was enough for them to decide what they need to do," he said, adding, "A massive farmers protest is scheduled on January 31...the committee on minimum support price (MSP) is yet to be formed by the Center. The country where political leaders seek votes in the name of caste and religion can never progress."
