Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi will attend the last prayers of the farmers killed in Lakhimpur district of UP today. This is her second visit to Lakhimpur Kheri within a week. Farmers opposing the visit of BJP leaders were crushed by a car, in which 4 farmers were killed and after that four others were also killed in the violence. Priyanka Gandhi had left there the very next day after the Lakhimpur incident, but she was taken into custody at Hargaon in Sitapur.
Samyukt Kisan Morcha had announced last week that this last Ardas would be organized on October 12 in Tikoniya village of Lakhimpur Kheri. In view of this program, the police have made tight security arrangements. Leave of UP Police personnel has already been cancelled till October 18. On Tuesday too, heavy barricading and policemen were seen deployed on the Lucknow-Sitapur-Lakhimpur highway. A lot of security has been tightened in Tikoniya village as well.
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Union Minister of State for Home Ajay Mishra’s son Ashish Mishra has been made an accused in the incident of crushing of farmers on October 3. Ashish Mishra has also been arrested. The leaders of all the farmers’ organizations are going to attend this last prayer. People from adjoining districts are also likely to participate in the program. Bharatiya Kisan Union leader Rakesh Tikait has reached Tikunia a day earlier. All such banners have also been seen on the highway around Lakhimpur Kheri, in which Congress leaders Priyanka Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi have been opposed to Lakhimpur Kheri.
However, when BKU-Tikait faction district vice-president Balkar Singh was asked whether politicians could attend the prayer meeting, he said that no leader would be allowed to share the stage with the leaders of the United Kisan Morcha. There are about 40 farmers organizations under the United Kisan Morcha, which have been agitating against the agriculture laws of the Center for almost a year.