NEW DELHI (AP) – Indian farmers who took part in more than two months of protests against the new agricultural laws went on a hunger strike on Saturday as they tried to reaffirm the peaceful nature of their movement following recent violent clashes with police.
Farmers’ leaders said the hunger strike was scheduled to coincide with the anniversary of the death of Indian independence leader Mahatma Gandhi, known for his nonviolent resistance to colonial rule. However, protesters said they were angry with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government.
“The way the government spreads planned lies and violence is reprehensible,” said a statement from Samyukta Kisan Morcha or the United Farmers ‘Front, a coalition of farmers’ unions.
Tens of thousands of farmers have been camped on the outskirts of New Delhi since November, seeking to repeal laws passed in September that say they will favor large agricultural and agricultural companies, destroy the profits of many farmers and leave those with small plots.
Modi and his allies say laws are needed to modernize Indian agriculture. Several rounds of talks between the two sides were unsuccessful.
The protests were largely peaceful, but violence erupted on Tuesday, Republic Day in India, when tens of thousands of farmers riding tractors and marching on foot beat police barricades and stormed the 17th-century Red Fort in New Delhi. -a short but shocking takeover.
The clashes left one protester dead and nearly 400 police officers injured. Officials did not say how many farmers were injured, but many were seen bleeding after police with riot gear hit them with sticks and fired tear gas.
Tensions have remained high since then, with sporadic clashes between protesters, police and unidentified groups shouting anti-farmer slogans. On Friday, a group of about 200 people entered a single protest site, despite heavy security, threw stones at farmers and damaged their tents.
The group called on farmers to clear the area and said they “insulted” the national flag during the Republic Day tractor parade. The farmers claimed that the vandals were mostly members of a Hindu nationalist group that has close ties to Modi’s party.
On Saturday, authorities blocked mobile internet services on three protest sites, a tactic favored by the Modi government to counter the protests. India’s interior ministry said internet services would be suspended until Sunday for “maintaining public safety”.
Farmers leader Rakesh Tikait said the government was “deluded if it felt that our movement would be weakened” by suspending the internet.
“The more they try to crush the voice of farmers, the bigger this movement will become,” Tikait wrote on Twitter.
Protests have been the biggest challenge for Modi since taking office in 2014, in part because farmers are the most influential voting bloc in the country and a key part of the economy. In a rare demonstration of unity, 16 opposition parties boycotted a parliamentary address by ceremonial President Ram Nath Kovind, who is from the Bharatiya Janata Party in Modi.
Both sides seemed increasingly entrenched.
Instead of trying to lower the temperature after Tuesday’s clashes, the government has filed cases against opposition journalists, activists and politicians, accusing them of sedition and inciting violence.
Meanwhile, farmers have seen their ranks swell with thousands of other new protesters, since a video of Tikait breaking down in tears as she spoke to reporters was widely shared on social media on Thursday.
“Our movement gained strength after the Republic Day rally. We have decided not to return, “said Sukhdev Singh, another farmer who took part in Saturday’s hunger strike. “If we die, we will die here.”
___ Associated Press video journalist Shonal Ganguly contributed to this report.