Knew folks would assist me however by no means imagined such response: Nodeep Kaur

“There are so many women in so many places who are continuously fighting for their rights, whose voices have not been raised to a high level. I am an ordinary girl and have been struggling for rights for a long time. Mujhe umeed nahi thi ki janta mujhe itna upar tak lekar jayegi,” mentioned 24-year-old Nodeep Kaur, a day after she was granted bail by the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
On Saturday afternoon, she arrived on the Singhu border protest website over a month after she had been arrested. An area activist, preventing for employees’ rights within the Kundli Industrial Area the place she too was working, she mentioned she had little thought whereas in jail that her case had gained worldwide prominence.
“I didn’t have that much of an idea but I knew that the people whom I had worked so much for would try to get me out of jail. I found out a lot later because I was not able to meet anyone, there weren’t even newspapers in jail. I found out much later that people like Meena Harris had also spoken up for me. I was very happy because it took the issue to an international level. I never thought anything like this would happen,” she informed The Indian Express.
“I was a local activist and that’s what I’ll be in the future — working for farmers, workers and women. I don’t support any political party and don’t want anything to do with them.”
She mentioned that her instant concern is to demand the discharge of her fellow activist Shiv Kumar, and protesters who’ve been arrested after January 26. “Till this movement continues, I will continue to go to all the borders and will try to encourage continued participation of workers. Farmers’ issues are deeply tied to those of workers. If prices increase, workers will be among the worst hit,” she mentioned.
Nodeep had goals to check in Delhi University after finishing her class XII in 2018, however needed to work as an alternative to assist her household. “I had a complete gap after class XII and was not able to study further because my family was not in a financially good condition. I wanted to study. I had even applied to Khalsa College, but when I started working here I saw how workers were being oppressed. I decided to let that dream go, and decided to continue here. I think the work I’m doing with workers is very important. I want to continue that, mujhe degree lene se koi matlab nahi hai,” she mentioned.
She additionally defined how the arrival of the farmers’ agitation to the Singhu border gave an impetus to the struggles of native employees.
“Three months before the kisan andolan, I started working here in a factory and joined the Mazdoor Adhikar Sangathan, which had been working here for three years. But this sangathan did not have the courage or the numbers to do a movement and put forward their demands. But then the farmers came to Singhu with their demands and when workers saw them, they also got jazba and josh that we can also put forward our demands. With that motivation, we had just demanded that the workers be paid for work they had done before the lockdown,” she mentioned.
She maintains her allegation that she was assaulted by police on the day she was arrested. “On January 12, we had gone to 2 different factories to demand wages because of some employees. At the third unit, we had been there for half an hour after which the short response workforce attacked us and the police got here. I used to be dragged away by the hair by police, and I’m not denying that there have been clashes between the police and employees however I had already been taken away by then…
At Kundli police station I used to be crushed very badly… Later at night time, I used to be taken to a police station in Sonipat, the place I had been pulled by the hair and compelled to signal a doc. There additionally I used to be crushed very badly… It is being mentioned that I actually didn’t need a medical test executed however that isn’t true… I used to be capable of get a medical test executed after 14 days,” she mentioned.