Greater Noida Farmers Hold March to Parliament
THE farmers of Greater Noida took out a march to parliament on February 8, after the BJP-led Uttar Pradesh government failed to implement the written assurances on the various demands of farmers and landless from land acquisition affected villages given on September 16, 2023. Farmers and landless from various villages under the leadership of All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) Gautam Buddha (GB) Nagar district committee, Bharatiya Kisan Parishad and other organisations began the rally on the Yamuna Expressway but were soon barricaded by the Uttar Pradesh police.
The repressive measures had started the night before when AIKS GB Nagar district president Rupesh Verma and convenor, Veer Singh Nagar were arrested and taken to Dadri police station. District president Jagbir Namberdar has been put under house arrest, along with other leaders. In a disproportionate manner, the Uttar Pradesh police also stopped the people from Sadhopur village who were en masse joining the parliament march and put them in an open jail in a public park. These incidents show the anti-democratic attitude of the Uttar Pradesh government towards the rural population of Greater Noida.
Despite the repression, farmers were able to reach the Yamuna Expressway and are currently blocking the expressway at the police barricading. Their immediate demand is that the UP police must release the leadership as well as release the jailed farmers of Sadhopur village, which include women and elderly as well.
The farmers and landless of the region have been holding sit-in protest at the Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority (GNIDA) and Noida Industrial Development Authority (NIDA) headquarters since 2023 demanding fair compensation according to the provisions of the Land Acquisition Act 2013, return of 10 per cent developed land, lease-back of acquired abadi land, permanent employment for affected families, 40 square metre plots for landless families, and other demands. After a 120-day protest by AIKS at GNIDA office last year, the CEO had accepted a number of these demands. But despite more than four months passing since, the Uttar Pradesh government failed to implement any of the accepted demands. This has enraged the farmers who not only restarted their indefinite dharna at the GNIDA office but also gave a call banning entry of any political leader, MLA or MP associated with the BJP from entering the villages in Greater Noida.
The AIKS demands that all the arrested and detained be released from police custody immediately and that the Uttar Pradesh government hold discussion with the leadership of the farmers.
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