We are not against BJP in UP panchayat elections, statement of Indian Farmers Union

Lucknow, dated 13 April 2021, Tuesday

UP, India's largest state, is currently witnessing a flurry of panchayat elections. The election is being considered as a semi-final ahead of next year's assembly elections here. Due to which political parties are exerting full force for this election also.

In such an environment, the farmers' organization Bharatiya Kisan Union has made a big statement. Yudhvir Singh, general secretary of the organization, said that the farmers' organization is not against the BJP and people are free to elect anyone in the UP elections. We have not given any instructions to the farmers for the panchayat elections. Farmers are free to make their own decisions.

The statement came at a time when the Indian Farmers' Union was opposing the ruling BJP over a new agricultural law. For this, Mahapanchayats have also been organized in UP.

However, leaders of the Indian Farmers' Union, including Rakesh Tikait and Naresh Tikait, who were questioned about the statement, remained silent. An English newspaper report quoted Rakesh Tikait as saying, "It is not a question of whether to support the BJP or not, as panchayat elections are person-based elections."