Chakka jam in Bihar against farm laws

Farmers associations supported byopposition parties, including the RJD, Saturday held anhour-long 'chakka jam' (road blockade) in Bihar in response tothe nation-wide agitation called by the farmers unions againstthe Centre's farm laws.

The agitation was held for an hour from 2 to 3 pm inthe state and passed of peacefully with stray incidents ofblockade on the national and state highways reported from somedistricts.

Congress, the Left parties, besides RJD extended theirsupport to the 'chakka jam'.

Bihar Rajya Kisan Sabha, an umbrella body of farmerassociations in the state and political parties, had declaredthat it would hold 'chakka jam' for an hour so as not toinconvenience students appearing for the intermediateexamination which is currently underway in the state.

The state capital, Gaya and several other towns andcities of Bihar did not report any disruption in the movementof traffic due to the agitation but there were reports fromdistricts where road blockades hampered normal life for sometime.

National and state highways were blocked for a briefperiod in different districts, including Muzaffarpur,Samastipur, Darbhanga and Bhagalpur.

In Muzaffarpur RJD district president Ramesh Gupta andhis supporters blocked Muzaffarpur-Motihari national highwayfor several hours. They also disrupted traffic in Company Bagharea in the town to press their demand to repeal the ''black''farm laws.

Grand Alliance leaders blocked Samastipur-Patna roadfor some time and took out a protest march in the town andraised anti-central government slogans. They blocked NH 28 forthree hours throwing normal life traffic out of gear.

The impact of the 'chakka jam' was also felt inDarbhanga where protesters blocked Darbhanga-Muzaffarpur NH57at several places.

CPI-ML (Liberation) leader Baidyanath Yadav claimedthat the farmers unions and opposition political parties willforce the government to repeal the farm laws, which he saidhad been enacted in the interest of the corporates.

In Bhagalpur a handful of Grand Alliance leadersshouted slogans at Khalifabagh and Kutchery chowks and blockedthe road for around 30 minutes.

Besides protesting against the Centre's three farmlaws, the countrywide three-hour-long agitation programme wasannounced also to register protest against the internet ban inareas near the farmers' agitation sites, alleged harassment bythe authorities and other issues.

The opposition parties had on January 30, 2021 formedhuman chains across Bihar in solidarity with the farmers.