Farmer leaders agitating against the Centre's new agri laws are observing 'Sadbhavana Diwas' on Mahatma Gandhi's death anniversary on Saturday and holding a day-long fast at the various protest sites.
Farmer leader Abhimanyu Kohar, a senior member of Samkyukt Kisan Morcha -- an umbrella body of farmer unions -- said the ongoing agitation will gain strength as farmers in large numbers will join them in coming days.
During a press conference on Friday, the leaders slammed the ruling BJP at the Centre and accused it of trying to "destroy" their "peaceful" agitation.
The farmer leaders claimed that the number of agitators at all the protest venues including Ghazipur, Singhu and Tikri borders is swelling after the police allegedly tried to remove farmer leader Rakesh Tikait from Ghazipur border on Thursday night.
Tikait’s emotional outburst in the face of an eviction order and massive force deployment led to a spontaneous mobilisation of people from several hundred miles away through the night.
By Friday morning, a depleted and dispirited protest site on the Delhi-Uttar Pradesh border was throbbing with a much bigger and boisterous crowd, ever more resolved to stand up to any bullying tactics.