BKU leader Rakesh Tikait holds a protest on the waterlogged road at the Ghazipur border

New Delhi: Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) spokesperson Rakesh Tikait and his supporters staged a protest and sit-in at the waterlogged flight path in Ghazipur near the Uttar Pradesh-Delhi border. Incessant heavy rains in Delhi and NCR led to flooding at the Ghazipur border and destroyed tents and other makeshift structures put up by farmers protesting against the three farm laws.

New Delhi was hit by heavy rains on Sunday, leading to flooding in several places including the Ghazipur border. The protesting farmers accused the authorities of not clearing the drains at the Ghazipur border, leading to flooding.

Photos of Rakesh Tikait lying in the flooded area as a sign of protest are doing the rounds online.

BKU spokesperson Rakesh Tikait continued his protest by sitting on the waterlogged road. “We have been demanding that the drain leading from here to Delhi be cleared, but the authorities concerned have never paid any attention,” BKU media in-charge Dharmendra Malik told PTI.

“The farmers who are protesting now have gone through three seasons (winter, summer and monsoon). Farmers won’t be scared by anything now,” Mr Malik said.

Farmers have been protesting at the Delhi borders since November 26, 2020 against three “contentious” laws, namely the Agricultural Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.