Rakesh Tikait breaks down in tears, warcry draws more farmers at Ghazipur

Rakesh Tikait said that he would commit suicide rather than end the protest.

On Thursday evening, heavy police force and security personnel were deployed at the Delhi-Uttar Pradesh border at Ghazipur. Gradually there was a decrease in the number of protesters at the site following which the national spokesperson of Bharat Kisan Union (BKU) Rakesh Tikait addressed the crowd saying that he will not surrender and call more people if needed. Once he left the stage, he spoke to the media and broke down in tears. While sobbing, he told the mediapersons that he would commit suicide rather than end the protest against the three farm laws. "We want to court arrest peacefully. But it seems there is a plan to stir violence while protesters return. If there is any such plan, I will remain here. I will face the bullet," Rakesh Tikait said. Determined not to leave the site, he also said that he would sit on a hunger strike and only drink water from his own village. Earlier, power and water supply had already been disrupted at the protest site. The video went viral and the site saw a surge in numbers as the crowd returned to be part of the protest.

Although the protesters did not get a written notice to clear the protest site, Ghaziabad district magistrate Ajay Shankar Pandey reportedly had asked the protesters to vacate the spot by Thursday night. Rakesh Tikait's brother Naresh Tikait, the leader of Balian Khap Panchayat (strongest Jat body in Western UP) who had earlier called for a protest end, announced a 'Mahapanchayat.'

Reportedly, groups of farmers from Meerut, Baraut, Baghpat and Muradnagar reached the site. The Rashtriya Jat Mahasangh also reached Ghazipur in support of the farmers. "This is a fight against the death of our farmers. By morning, thousands of farmers will be here," Rohit Jakhar, a Jat leader said. As a result by Friday morning, the additional security force from the spot was withdrawn.