Gujrat: Jagjit Singh, a Kutch-based Sikh farmer, was seriously injured in an attack by a group allegedly associated with Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) in Loria village of Bhuj district this afternoon.
Media reports say more than a dozen other farmers fled the spot to save their lives. “At least 22 farmers from Punjab and Haryana, allotted land in the area, continue to live in panic” reports The Tribune (TT).
The farmers, including brothers Jaswinder Singh and Harvinder Singh of Pitho village in Bathinda district, went to Loria village today to measure their land for getting the record computerised as per a recent communication of the Gujarat government.
Fearing trouble, the farmers had sought police security, but their request went unheard. On their way back home, a group led by former sarpanch Pratap Singh intercepted them and attacked them with sticks.
Angrez Singh, a farmer from Tohana, said the windowpanes of their vehicles were smashed. Jagtar Singh, a farmer from Kauni, said Kutch farmers wanted to uproot them since they had turned their barren land into fertile fields.
They later lodged a police complaint, but no case was registered till late in the evening. The Gujarat government has given the task of updating the land records to a private firm. Anand and Jeeta Ram of the firm too ran away after being mobbed.
Bohar Singh, a farmer belonging to Ratta Rori in Faridkot, said: “We have been getting threats from Kutch farmers, particularly from those aligned with the ruling party, for a long time. We are only hoping for the Union Government to come to our rescue”.
DR Patel, Deputy Superintendent of Police, said: “A few cars have been smashed. A case has been registered against the accused. We will not allow such incidents to happen again.”