Who is Naresh Tikait, the farmer leader drumming up support for wrestlers’ protest?

India’s wrestlers have taken to the streets. Led by medal-winning athletes Vinesh Phogat, Sakshi Malik and Bajrang Punia, they have been protesting for weeks against Wrestling Federation of India chief and Bharatiya Janata Party (MP) Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, who has been accused of sexual harassment and criminal intimidation by seven women wrestlers including a minor. As Singh remains defiant, Sports Minister Anurag Thakur has urged the protesting sportspersons to “trust” the Delhi Police investigation. But so far, the wrestlers have got the biggest support from farm leaders and leading from the front is Naresh Tikait.

Who is Naresh Tikait?

He is the less popular of the two brothers. During the 2020 and 2021 farmers’ protests against the government’s controversial farm bills, which were later withdrawn, it was the young brother Rakesh Tikait who was in the spotlight. But Naresh Tikait has stepped up and decided to fight the big fight and back the wrestlers.

The senior Tikait is the chief of the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU), a farmers’ organisation which was at the forefront of the farmers’ agitation and has supported several demonstrations since. He also heads the influential powerful Balyan khap panchayat.

He is the elder son of one of Uttar Pradesh’s most prominent farm leaders Chaudhary Mahendra Singh Tikait, who founded the BKU. Now Naresh and Rajesh are carrying his legacy forward.

While Rakesh Tikait is the one often grabbing headlines, Naresh Tikait is a well-respected figure across khaps and is known for being measured.

The 60-year-old has been fervently backing the wrestlers’ #MeToo protest. And he is not only giving headline-grabbing bytes to the media, but his actions are also speaking louder than his words.

Also read: How the wrestlers’ protest puts the spotlight on rampant sexual abuse in sports in India

What is his role in the farmers’ protest?

On Tuesday, the protesting wrestlers led by Olympians Bajrang Punia and Sakshi Malik and World Championship medallist Vinesh Phogat said that they would immerse their medals in the River Ganga. It seemed like the last resort after the police stopped them from protesting at New Delhi’s Jantar Mantar again.

Naresh Tikait was at his residence in Muzzafarnagar when he heard that the wrestlers were going to Haridwar. Along with other khap and farmer leaders, he headed their way.

The wrestlers reached Har ki Pauri in Haridwar, Uttarakhand and Tikait joined them. The disheartened athletes were seen sitting along the banks of the river for more than an hour, where some were seen clutching onto their hard-earned medals and citations.

Naresh Tikait went into a brief huddle with the wrestlers, who then deferred their decision to drop the medals in the Ganga by five days. The farmer leader convinced them and gave them his word that he would drum up more support.

He told The Indian Express that the athletes were angry after they were removed from Jantar Mantar but he convinced them not to immerse their medals in the river. “Bacche gusse me wahan chale gaye the… Humne unhe manaya ki aap aisa mat karo…” He has assured them that they will have their demands fulfilled.

The wrestlers want the WFI chief to step down for alleged sexual harassment of the women sportspersons including Malik and Phogat. “The daughters of our country are going through so much…they have dreams. What is happening is shameful,” Naresh Tikait said.

Now he has stuck to his promise and called for a big meeting of all khaps on Thursday, which will be held in Uttar Pradesh. According to the BKU leaders, representatives of 30 to 35 khaps and their heads from Delhi, UP, Haryana, Punjab, and Rajasthan will be participating in the mahapanchayat to discuss the wrestlers’ protest.

Tikait has said that they demand that Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh should be arrested.

Also read: The political life and controversies of WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh

What is the government saying?

The agitation has been confined to Delhi and Haryana but now with Tikait’s call for a meeting, there is growing fear among those in power that the protests will spread to other parts of the country.

Some BJP leaders from north India have reached Delhi and met a Union minister, reports The Indian Express.

The sports minister has asked wrestlers to be patient and wait until the Delhi Police concludes its investigation into the matter. ‘I urge the wrestlers to be patient till the outcome of the investigation. I also urge them not to take any step that would undermine sports,” Thakur said.

On Tuesday, BJP Hisar MP Brijendra Singh spoke in support of protesting wrestlers. “I feel the pain and helplessness of our wrestlers forcing them to the brink of throwing away their lifetime of hardwork – the medals from Olympics, CWGs, Asian Games in the holy Ganga. Absolutely heartbreaking,” he tweeted.

The Delhi Police has said that a status report would be submitted to the court in the next few days.

What is Singh saying?

The WFI president has been named in two FIRs registered by the Delhi Police on 28 April including one under the POCSO Act related to the allegations of the minor wrestler.

However, he has refused to step down, saying that the charges against him are false. “I am once again saying that if even if a single allegation is proved against me, I will hang myself. If you have proof, give it to the court, and if the court hangs me, I will accept it, he said, according to news agency PTI.

With inputs from agencies

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