Image Courtesy:india.com
While farmers’ leaders began their discussion with government officials regarding the three agriculture laws on December 1, 2020, Delhi police detained Shaheen Bagh activist Bilkis or ‘Bilkis daadi’ who reached Singhu border to show her solidarity with the farmers movement.
Speaking to ANI reporters, the 82-year-old woman said, “We are daughters of farmers. We will go to support farmers’ protest today. We will raise our voice. The government should listen to us.”
We are daughters of farmers, we’ll go to support farmers’ protest today. We will raise our voice, the government should listen to us: Bilkis Dadi, Shaheen Bagh activist #Delhi pic.twitter.com/Cfo50IrVxP
— ANI (@ANI) December 1, 2020
Hours before reaching the border, the iconic daadi had sent out a message stating that she would support her farmer brothers who demanded the withdrawal of the three anti-farmer-dubbed laws – the Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020, as well as the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act 2020 and the Electricity Bill 2020. She said that she would support farmers just as they had supported Shaheen Bagh protests.
Earlier, the aged activist had attracted undue attention during the farmers’ protest as the right-wing IT cell began circulating a month-old image of Daadi supposedly marching in solidarity with farmers. Actress Kangana Ranaut and the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) top IT person Amit Malviya shared the fake news for which they received heavy criticism. However, after the incident, Bilkis resolved to join her voice with the farmers’ movement.
The Time magazine dubbed “global icon” Bilkis daadi is known across India for her influential role in Shaheen Bagh protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and similar discriminatory laws passed by the ruling regime.
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