New Delhi: A day after a 57-year-old farmer from Uttar Pradesh’s Baghpat died at the protest site in UP-Ghaziabad border, another farmer on Saturday allegedly died by suicide at the protest side, police said. The deceased was identified as Kashmir Singh Ladi, who hailed from the Bilaspur area of UP’s Rampur district.
72-year-old Ladi was founded hanging at one of the mobile toilets at the protest sites. Shamsher Rana, media coordination of Bharatiya Kisan, claimed that Ladi has left behind a note written in Punjabi that blamed the government for not accepting the demands of farmers.
“The letter is currently in possession of the police, who refused to disclose more details,” he told Hindustan Times.
“The farmers’ committee has decided against conducting the autopsy. Prima facie, it appears to be a case of suicide and nobody has suspected any foul play. The note recovered from his possession will be examined,” said circle officer Anshu Jain.
Along with him, Ladi’s son and grandsons, too, have been participating in the protests at the Delhi-Ghaziabad border.
Several farmer deaths have been reported from the protest sites around Delhi since the agitation began over a month ago. While some farmers reportedly succumbed to extreme weather conditions, some died by suicide.
Apart from the UP-Ghaziabad border, thousands of farmers from Punjab and Haryana are camping at Delhi’s borders with Haryana at Singhu and Tikri. Farmers’ unions have threatened to intensify their agitation if their demands—primarily the repeal of the farm laws—are not met in their eighth round of talks with the Centre on Monday.