Farmer leader Shiv Kumar Kakka on Thursday condemned the attack on journalist Narendra Gosain. He said action should be taken against the person who attacked the journalist who was covering covering the 'Kisan Sansad' at Jantar Mantar in Delhi.
"I strongly condemn the attack on the journalist. Action should be taken against the attacker, no matter which organization, be it police or govt, the person belongs to. We'll ensure that action is taken & such incidents don't happen again," news agency ANI quoted the farmer leader as saying.
Earlier, Gosain said a man hit him on his head with a light stand. However, the journalist said he wasn't sure if the attacker was a farmer. "Some people were making videos&verbally abusing media (in Delhi today). After a scuffle, a man hit me on my head with a light stand. He had ID of some sort that said Kisan Media. Not sure if he was a farmer but it appeared he was biased towards farmers," news agency ANI quoted him as saying.
Meanwhile, after the incident the newly-appointed Union minister Meenakshi Lekhi termed the farmers as hooligans. "They are not farmers, they are hooligans... These are criminal acts. What happened on January 26 was also shameful criminals activities. Opposition promoted such activities," news agency ANI quoted her as saying.
Later, the Union minister was criticized for her statement. Farmer leader Shiv Kumar Kakka said the Lekhi's remark is an insult to 80 crore farmers of India. "If we're hooligans, Meenakshi Lekhi ji should stop eating food grains grown by us. She should be ashamed of herself. We've passed a resolution in Farmers' Parliament condemning her statement," news agency ANI quoted him as saying.
Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader Rakesh Tikait also condemned Lekhi's remark. "Hooligans are the ones who have nothing. It is wrong to make such remarks for farmers. We are farmers, not hooligans. Farmers are 'anndatas' of the land," news agency ANI quoted Tikait as saying.
