Farmers, horticulturists under SKM banner at odds with BJP’s Mandi Lok Sabha candidate Kangana Ranaut

Farmers in Himachal Pradesh oppose Kangana Ranaut's BJP candidacy due to alleged derogatory remarks against farmers.

Groups of farmers and horticulturists in Himachal Pradesh are up in arms against actor Kangana Ranaut, who is contesting the upcoming Lok Sabha election from Mandi constituency as a Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) candidate.

Sanyukt Kisan Manch (SKM), an amalgamation of over two dozen farmer and horticulturist outfits of Himachal Pradesh has asked Ms. Ranaut to seek an apology from the farming community for her alleged derogatory remarks against farmers during the year-long (2020-21) farmer’s protest against the now repealed farm laws or be ready to face farmers’ ire.

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SKM held a meeting in Shimla on Thursday to deliberate on problems being faced by farmers and horticulturists in the State. “The anti-farmer policies of the Centre government have pushed the farming community into acute crises. The input costs have been consistently rising, and farmers are fetching poor returns for their crops, yet the government continues to be ignorant. In the past five years, the Lok Sabha MPs of the BJP from Himachal never stood in support of farmers, and hence we have decided to oppose their party in the upcoming polls,” said Sanjay Chauhan, co-coordinator of SKM.

“In this series, especially, we will oppose BJP’s Lok Sabha candidate Kangana Ranaut from Mandi. During the farmers’ struggle in 2020-21 against the now-repealed farm laws, she made derogatory remarks against farmers. She should apologise for it, otherwise, we will mobilise farmers across the villages in the State to stand up against the BJP. We will expose the BJP’s and Ms. Ranaut’s anti-farmer mindset,” said Mr. Chauhan.

“We have been demanding on the basis of the formula evolved by noted agricultural scientist M.S. Swaminathan at (C2+50%) to the farmers as promised, besides imposing 100% import duty on apples and other fruits. Also, a reduction of subsidies on fertilizers, seeds, pesticides, fungicides, agricultural equipment and other input items should be stopped. We also demand the abolishment of Goods and Services Tax on all input items and packaging materials used in agriculture and horticulture. We will approach all political parties with these demands, and decide to extend our support only after their assurance of fulfillment,” he added.

The Lok Sabha election for the four parliamentary seats in Himachal Pradesh is slated for June 1.