Kisan Kranti Yatra: Farmers were committing suicide in UP before we came to power, says Yogi Adityanath

Lucknow: Refuting allegations that farmers are enduring hardships under the BJP government, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Tuesday lashed out at political opponents saying “those who had earlier exploited the farmers were now shedding crocodile tears for them.” “Farmers were committing suicide before we came to power in Uttar Pradesh. They were lathi-charged when procuring seeds and fertilisers. Those who exploited farmers are today shedding crocodile tears,” the chief minister told reporters. [caption id=“attachment_5170901” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath. Reuters[/caption] Speaking on the Bharatiya Kisan Union-led (BKU) farmers’ agitation, the CM said he had sent two state ministers to Delhi three days ago to handle the situation. “Some of the farmers’ issues have already been taken care of by our government, like loses caused by stray cattle and old vehicles,” he said, elaborating on the initiatives taken up by his government. He reiterated that his government would not desist from taking any step for the welfare of farmers. “Never has so much relief been provided to sugar cane growers as has been done under this government. So much procurement has never been done in the past. Potato growers have never got such (good) support prices,” he said. Responding to reports of police action against farmers, Adityanath said everyone has the right to go to Delhi but no one has the right to take law in their hands. He urged the farmers to be patient till talks with the high-level delegation were over. Claiming that the Modi government had done more for the farmers than previous governments, Adityanath gave details on the works taken up by his government to aid farmers. Akhilesh Yadav, Arvind Kejriwal and Ajit Singh, among other national leaders, spoke in favour of farmers on Tuesday, to which Adityanath said these politicians cannot differentiate between potato and sugarcane as they are not farmers nor do they have farming backgrounds.