Yogendra Yadav raises farmers' issue at Bengaluru's Swaraj Samwad

BENGALURU: Expelled Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Yogendra Yadav on Wednesday reached out to farmers and Dalits at the first Swaraj Samwad event to be held outside Delhi. The choice of Bengaluru is significant as the city denizens sent extensive funds and volunteers to support the AAP in the Delhi elections of 2013 and 2015.

The event on Wednesday saw the might of Karnataka's top farmer organisation Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha (KRRS) and the Dalit Sangharsha Samithi turn out in force to endorse Yadav's Yatra and his leadership of the alternative politics movement in the country. Both these sectors, so far, had identified themselves either with the Congress or the Janata Dal (S) in Southern Karnataka.

“The farmer is the central issue in the country. The AAP movement in this state and elsewhere was addressing more urban-centric issues, our Yatra will take up those of the farmers and the Dalits,“ he told ET.

Yadav also declared that Bengaluru would host the communications headquarters of his and fellow activist Prashant Bhushan's nation-wide Swaraj Abhiyaan, adding that he was taking up farmer and Dalit issues all along this Yatra. If Chuk ki Nanjundaswamy , the l daughter of KRRS founder the late farmer-economist l MD Nanjundaswamy , gave the inaugural address, Dalit icon and eminent writer Devanuru Mahadeva was present all through the event.

Mahadeva's presence was significant, as he is identi fied as one of Karnataka t chief minister Siddara maiah's mentors. Anti-corruption activist SR Hiremath and several members of the AAP, who , have quit the party , partici pated in the event.