Farmers in Punjab are now expressing their anger not just towards Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders but also towards Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders. The AAP faces growing public dissatisfaction due to unkept promises, unanswered questions, and what many see as "arrogant" behaviour. Some farmers have even labelled AAP as the "B-team of BJP." Student groups and teachers' associations have also united in the protests against the ruling party. Just yesterday, AAP MLAs Balkar Sidhu from Rampura Phul and Sukhbir Singh Maiserkhana from Maur faced backlash from farmers during their visits to launch development projects.

Sidhu visited Sidhana village in Rampura to launch an event as part of the ‘Education Revolution’ initiative. As word spread that he was in the area, members of the Bhartiya Kisan Union (Krantikari Punjab) and BKU Ekta Ugrahan gathered outside the school where the event was being held.

When Sidhu arrived with police protection, the farmers began protesting and chanting slogans about the alleged mistreatment at the Shambhu and Khanauri borders. They also raised concerns about the Model School Chaoke case. After the event, Sidhu approached the farmers, and their leaders asked him various questions. Sidhu replied that he could only comment after consulting with Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann. Later, Sidhu faced more protests in Salebrah village.

Meanwhile, Sukhbir Singh Maiserkhana, another ruling party legislator from the Maur assembly segment, encountered protests from BKU (Ekta Ugrahan) members during his visit to Ramgarh Bhundar village. Maiserkhana had also faced opposition from BKU Sidhupur members while heading to an event for the ‘Sikhya Kranti’ program.

On Monday, members of the Bhartiya Kisan Union (Ekta Sidhupur) questioned Gidderbaha AAP MLA Hardeep Singh Dimpy Dhillon in Gurusar village. They referred to the AAP as the "BJP’s B-team." They asked why farmers could not protest at the Khanauri and Shambhu borders. In reply, Dimpy suggested that the state government might have been under pressure to end the protests at the borders, as there had been no significant developments over the past year.

In an interview with the newspaper, Prem Singh Bhangu, President of the All India Kisan Federation and senior SKM Punjab leader, said that the AAP Punjab government is facing strong resentment from farmers in the villages whenever its MLAs and ministers visit to inaugurate repairs in school buildings. He mentioned that the government is being criticised and labelled as supporters of the BJP for using force to suppress the peaceful farmer protests at the Shambhu and Khanauri borders.

“The government also foiled the March 5 proposed morcha to be launched at Chandigarh by making more than 1,000 arrests of farmers in the state, stopping them from reaching Chandigarh, their own capital, by forcibly stopping them in Punjab. Moreover, the government is trying to create a divide between rural and urban people, and Jat versus non-Jat in the state in order to garner votes, which could cost it dearly in the coming assembly elections,” he stated.

While some party leaders steer clear of meeting farmers, others have reacted angrily when questioned. Punjab Assembly Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan has been criticised multiple times.

On April 8, at a farmers’ training camp in Faridkot, a farmer interrupted Sandhwan’s speech in the middle, openly stating that Sandhwan did not know about dairy farming. However, Sandhwan remained unfazed and did not take offence. Protestors gathered further from the house of a leader in Kotkapura, while the Punjab Students Union also held a protest at Brajindra College in Faridkot. A similar incident occurred on April 5 in Muktsar, where Punjab Agriculture Minister Gurmeet Singh Khudian was interrupted by Nirmal Singh, a member of the Bharatiya Kisan Union, who questioned him about paddy varieties. The police promptly detained Singh, charging him under sections 126 and 170 of the BNSS, and sent him to jail. He was released on bail after four days.

AAP MLA Labh Singh Ugoke was questioned by farmers who demanded an investigation into the issue of "missing trolleys." Ugoke responded by saying the government had many other responsibilities to handle.

Last week, Batyala MLA Amansher Singh, also known as Sherry Kalsi, was encircled by farmers. At first, he stayed calm and engaged with them, but when they began shouting slogans, he reportedly responded by chanting "AAP zindabad" to counter them.

Other MLAs- Gurdev Singh Dev Mann in Nabha, Gurdit Singh Sekhon in Faridkot, Dalbir Singh Tong in Baba Bakala, and Aresh Kataria in Zira- have also encountered the similar backlash.

Sarwan Singh Pandher, coordinator of the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha, said that just as farmers had questioned BJP leaders in 2020 and 2022, it is now AAP’s turn to face similar scrutiny. He mentioned that farmers had planned to confront Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann and AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal in Amritsar on April 9, but they weren’t given the opportunity.

Meanwhile, villagers in Chauke, Bathinda, recently decided to ban AAP leaders from entering their village. This move came after a police crackdown on protesting teachers outside Adarsh School on March 27, during which women protestors were lathi-charged. Residents of several villages in the Lambi constituency, represented by Punjab Agriculture Minister Gurmeet Singh Khudian, have declared they will boycott AAP leaders. Similarly, villagers from Kotla Jattan and Beer Bhamarasi in Fatehgarh Sahib and Babarpur in Patiala have barred ruling party leaders from entering their areas.

Kaka Singh Kolta, General Secretary of BKU (Sidhupur), warned that this is only the beginning, and soon these leaders won’t even be able to leave their homes.