"Sarkari Taliban": Farmer Leader Rakesh Tikait's Attack Over Crackdown

Some 10 people were injured on Saturday after the state police lathi-charged a group of farmers who had stopped traffic on a highway while heading towards Haryana's Karnal to protest against a BJP meeting.

Bharatiya Kisan Union leader Rakesh Tikait on Sunday called Karnal civil officer Ayush Sinha commander of "Sarkari Talibani" for ordering police to "crack the heads" of farmers at a protest yesterday. "Yesterday, an officer ordered (policemen) to hit farmers on their heads. They call us Khalistani. If you would call us Khalistani and Pakistani, we would say Sarkari Talibani has occupied the country. They are Sarkari Talibanis," the farmer leader said at an event in Haryana's Nuh. Mr Tikait, during his address to farmers, said that such officers should be posted in Maoist-affected areas. A video showing Karnal Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Ayush Sinha asking policemen to ensure farmers who were protesting against BJP leaders get "head injuries" had drawn flak from several quarters including BJP MP Varun Gandhi.