BJP using religion, caste divisions for 2024 elections: BKU leader Tikait

PILIBHIT: Mahendra Singh Tikait, leader of the Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU), criticised the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), accusing them of employing a divisive strategy to secure votes in the upcoming 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

Speaking at the Badhepura Gurudwara in Pilibhit on Saturday night, Tikait said, "The people are being divided by the BJP in the name of religion and caste for the sake of its vested political interests."

"In Haryana, the BJP is contriving to create fractions among the Khap panchayats, farmers' outfits and wrestlers to restrain them from being united," he alleged.

"The BJP, in fact, is nowhere concerned with religion but with provoking religious sentiments in people," Tikait said during a night-long stay on his way to Lakhimpur Kheri on Sunday morning.

The BKU leader also dismissed the Uttar Pradesh government's recent decision to increase the procurement rate of paddy by Rs 143 per quintal. Tikait termed it inadequate and argued that if both the BJP-led union and state governments were truly committed to safeguarding farmers' interests, they should have endorsed the Minimum Support Price (MSP) guarantee bill.

"Without it, the direct benefits of price hikes are reaped by private traders who, in collusion with procurement agencies, force farmers to sell their crops at prices much lower than the MSP. The same produce is sold at government procurement centres, with the difference in price shared among the traders, government agencies and officials," he added.