IYC protests against Lekhi for calling farmers 'mawalis', demands apology

New Delhi, July 23 (IANS) A day after Union Minister Meenakshi Lekhi described farmers as "mawalis", hundreds of Indian Youth Congress (IYC) activists on Friday staged a protest over the remark and demanded that she apologise to the farmers.

IYC workers under the leadership of their national president Srinivas BV staged a protest outside the residence of Lekhi in the national capital.

The IYC workers raised slogans against the Minister and also burned her effigy.

The protesting IYC activists were detained by the police.

The protest comes a day after Lekhi while addressing a press conference here called the protesting farmers 'mawalis' (ruffians).

However, Lekhi later claimed that her words were "twisted", but added that she withdraws her remarks if they have hurt anyone.

Speaking to the media, Srinivas condemned the remarks and said "This shows their poor thinking and mentality towards farmers of our country."

The IYC leader said that for the last eight months, the country's food producers have been fighting day and night on the borders of Delhi against the three black agricultural laws, leaving everything behind, but the BJP government of the capitalists is trying to prove them as 'mawalis'. However, the country's youth will not let the Modi government succeed in its conspiracy.

Srinivas added that farmers are not 'mawalis', they are the caretakers of this country, they are the food producers of the country.

"But the arrogance has become so dominant in the BJP that it is not missing any opportunity to insult the farmers. It is shameless of a BJP minister to call farmers 'mawalis'," he said.

He demanded that Lekhi go to the farmers sitting on the borders of Delhi and apologise to them, otherwise she should resign from her post, because the country will not tolerate the humiliation of its food producers.

IYC national media in-charge Rahul Rao said that when party colleagues came to protest against Lekhi's use of indecent language for farmers, they were detained by Delhi Police.

"Even if the government arrests us, we will continue to raise our voice against the humiliation of the food producers," he added.