Bollywood actress and BJP MP Kangana Ranaut is in the news again. He raised the demand for re-implementation of the three farm laws that had been withdrawn. The opposition turned aggressive and protested against Kangana’s statement. However, this is not the first time Kangana has commented on matters related to farmers. Three years ago, he accused female agitators of being paid to sit in Dana. He has since also made controversial remarks about Sikhs.
This is the second time in a month that the BJP has distanced itself from Kangana’s remarks. This time too the BJP termed Kangana’s statement as a “personal statement”. Let us know about Kangana’s controversial remarks…
Kangana Ranaut is a BJP MP from Mandi constituency in Himachal Pradesh. He joined the BJP this year. Kangana made her political debut in the Lok Sabha elections, defeating Congress leader and Himachal Pradesh government minister Vikramaditya Singh. Vikramaditya is the son of former chief minister Veerbhadra Singh. Vikramaditya’s mother Pratibha Singh is a Congress MP from Mandi.
Did Kangana’s comments create controversy?
September 24, 2024
Bharatiya Janata Party MP Kangana Ranaut on Tuesday sparked controversy by saying that the three contentious farm laws should be re-implemented. Kangana said farmers themselves should demand implementation of the law. Kangana said, I know this statement may be controversial but the three farm laws should be restored. The farmers themselves should demand this. Kangana argued that all three laws were beneficial to farmers but the government repealed them due to opposition from farmers’ organizations in some states. He said that farmers are the backbone of national development. I would like to appeal to them to demand the repeal of these laws in their own interests.
August 25, 2024
Kangana sparked controversy by saying India was ready to create a Bangladesh-like situation in India through the farmers’ movement. He said if our top leadership is not strong, what happened in Bangladesh will happen here (India) soon. There is a peasant movement here, dead bodies are hanging there, rapes are happening there. Farmers have long-term plans, as is happening in Bangladesh. Such a conspiracy… what do farmers think…? Foreign powers like China, the United States…are active here.
However, after Kangana’s statement, the BJP came out to clarify and said that this is not the opinion of the party. Kangana Ranaut is neither allowed to speak on party policy matters nor is she authorized to issue a statement. The BJP has directed Kangana Ranaut not to make any such statements in future.
November 2021
When Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the withdrawal of the three farm laws, Kangana called it unfortunate and blamed the farmers’ movement. He said India was being weakened by such movements and farmers were neglecting the national interest for their own benefit.
February 2021
When international celebrities and pop stars Rihanna and Greta Thunberg tweeted in support of the farmers’ movement, Kangana expressed her displeasure and said they were part of a conspiracy to defame India. He called Rihanna a “fool” and the farmers’ movement “terrorism”. Kangana wrote: No one is talking about this because they are not farmers, they are terrorists who are trying to divide India so that China can occupy our country.
In fact, on February 2, 2021, Rihanna shared a link to the CNN report and wrote – Why aren’t we talking about this? Alongside the tweet, he also added the hashtag #FarmersProtest.
November 2021
Kangana accused some people involved in the farmers’ movement of being “Khalistan terrorists”. He said it was a conspiracy to divide the country and Khalistani elements were involved. He called it a conspiracy to destroy the country. Kangana wrote in an Instagram post that Khalistani terrorists are causing trouble for the government today…but we should not forget one woman…the only woman Prime Minister who trampled her underfoot. No matter how much trouble they brought to the country… he crushed them like mosquitoes at the cost of his own life… without tearing the country apart. The comments sparked outrage in the Sikh community. Many complaints were lodged against Kangana. This statement also adds to the problems for the BJP. The Sikh community is considered an important support base for the BJP.
December 2020
Kangana had made controversial remarks about elderly women agitators involved in the farmers’ movement, saying the women were being paid to participate in the protests. Referring to Shaheen Bagh’s “grandmother”, he also targeted a woman and said she had protested for Rs 100 each. After this statement, the controversy intensified and a disturbing situation emerged within the Bharatiya Janata Party.
When accused of taking money to join the farmers’ movement
Kangana allegedly mistook a woman farmer from Punjab for Bilkis Bano. However, she is a female farmer in her 80s. In fact, a woman named Bilkis Bano had earlier made international headlines during the anti-CAA protests in Delhi’s Shaheen Bagh area. Kangana shared a tweet in which she alleged that “Shaheen Bagh Dadi” has also joined the farmers’ movement at Delhi borders over the new farm laws. He retweeted the post, along with a photo of two elderly women including Bilkis Bano, and wrote: “This is what it means to be included in Time’s list of the 100 most influential people ‘s grandmother…and can buy it for just 100 rupees.”
In Kangana’s tweet, an elderly woman can be seen holding the flag of the farmers’ movement high even as she walks hunched over. Her name is Mohinder Kaur. It was later discovered that the two women were different. Kangana deleted her tweet about the incident.
Kangana’s remarks were seen as insulting to farmers and women. In June this year, a female Central Industrial Security Force police officer slapped Kangana at the Chandigarh airport. The woman police officer said her mother participated in the farmers’ protest. Kangana’s remarks about “taking money” hurt him.
Center has to withdraw farm laws
Let us tell you that the central government had to withdraw these laws in November 2021 after long protests by farmer unions. In fact, farmers are standing at the Singhu, Ghazipur and Tikri borders demanding repeal of all three farm laws. The protests lasted for 14 months. On January 26, 2021, farmers in New Delhi paraded on tractors and entered the Red Fort, causing riots.
What is the problem for the BJP?
Kangana recently issued a statement for the second time in a month on issues related to the farmers’ movement. The BJP distanced itself from his statements both times. The statement comes at a time when Haryana holds assembly elections and the BJP is struggling with anti-incumbency battles there. The party also gave Kangana strict instructions when she issued a statement in August, but the subsequent new statement gave the opposition an opportunity to attack.
Since Haryana has a large number of farmer voters, these farmers are considered important in deciding the future of any political party. The BJP government has been in power in the state for 10 years. Shambhu border closed due to movement of farmers. Congress has made this an issue. Congress leader Bhupendra Hooda announced that if the Congress government is formed, we will open the Shambhu border. In fact, farmers under the leadership of United Kisan Morcha and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha gave a call for ‘Delhi Chalo’. However, these farmers were intercepted at Shambhu border and Khanauri border. The farmers have been camping on the Punjab-Haryana border since February.
