Farmers urge Governor Vajubhai Vala not to sign Land Reforms Bill; protest disrupts traffic

The third day of protest by farmers gained more strength on Thursday as thousands of workers from the four transport corporation joined the agitation.

Under the banner of Aikya Horata Samiti, farmers, trade union members and workers from various organisations raised slogans targeting both the state and the central government over the recent pieces of legislation.

The farmers also vented ire against JD(S), whose support helped BJP to pass the law in the Legislative Council.

The move by farmers to take out a rally to Rajbhavan, to press on the Governor not to sign the Land Reforms Bill, put the police under the pressure initially. Ultimately, farmers had to give up their plan to lay siege to the Rajbhavan. Many sat on the road and continued the protest.

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Later, many met Governor Vajubhai Vala and submitted a memorandum. A member of the Samiti said that Vala had assured of looking into the matter and to consider their opinion before signing the bill.

On the other hand, the employees of state-run transport corporations from several districts, who came to Bengaluru along with family members also took to streets. The protesters demanded that they be considered government employees. The demand was raised days after Transport minister said that the move would cause a financial burden on the government.

Meanwhile, Raitha Sangha’s Kodihalli Chandrashekhar expressed support to the cause of the transport corporation workers. “The government should not ignore them. We are ready to lay siege to Vidhana Soudha and go to jail to support their cause,” he said.

Many areas in the Central Business District, especially areas near KR Circle, Vidhana Soudha, Race Course Road and Town Hall, saw bumper-to-bumper traffic till late evening due to spate of protests.

Police had erected barricades at Freedom Park, the site of the protest, to control the swelling crowds.