As farmers meet again today, how long can Haryana BJP keep away, hope anger doesn’t reach it

The BJP got a reprieve on the farmer front the past few days, with the protesters having called a pause. However, with no end to the agitation in sight yet as the farmers meet again Thursday, the party may find it harder to continue riding two boats, as it has been doing – in Punjab, supporting the farmers; and in Haryana, defending its government’s crackdown against them.

Thedeath of a youth, Shubhkaran Singh, of injuries received at a protest site, and thealleged assault on another, Preetpal Singh, in the same incident have mounted pressure on the Haryana BJP to come out on the side of farmers.

The memory of the 2020-21 agitation over three Central agricultural laws is still fresh in the minds of Haryana BJP leaders. The agitating farmers had ensured that the ruling alliance leaders could not enter their native Haryana villages at many places at the time. The party does not want a repeat ahead of the Lok Sabha polls and Haryana Assembly elections later this year.

The tide started turning after Punjab BJP leaders, particularly those who have come to the party from the Congress and were very vocal in support of farmers during the 2020-21 agitation, started breaking their silence. If Punjab BJP chief Sunil Jakhar called himself “a farmer first”, former Congress CM and now BJP leader Amarinder Singh met Prime Minister Narendra Modi to raise their concerns.

Jakhar also urged restraint on the part of “governments and security forces” after Shubhkaran’s death, in a swipe at Haryana’s highhanded actions, while Amarinder slammed the alleged assault leaving Preetpal injured as “barbaric”.

So far, the Haryana BJP has been blaming the Aam Aadmi Party-led Punjab government for the flaring up of the protests, hoping the charges will