Thousands of Punjab farmers broke through barricades and made their way into Haryana on Thursday, challenging tear gas shells and water cannons en route to Delhi, where law enforcement officials implemented strict crowd control measures as residents confronted the long traffic jams in border areas.
Late at night, a large group of farmers, both from Haryana and Punjab, arrived at a toll plaza in Panipat, some 100 km from the capital, setting the stage for a confrontation with the Delhi police, who he has refused to give them permission to protest inside. the city limits. The leaders of the farmers’ groups said they will resume their march, dubbed “Delhi Chalo”, on Friday morning.
As Delhi braced for a potential law and order challenge as well as traffic disruptions, a major drama unfolded in Haryana on Thursday, as Punjab farmers entered the state a day after being thwarted by barricades. borderlines.
Ambala police set up barricades on a bridge over the Ghaggar River that connected the city of Haryana with Punjab’s Patiala. The farmers threw several of these barricades into the river, facing tear gas shells from law enforcement personnel. Protesters could be seen waving black flags and shouting slogans.
Police made announcements over loudspeakers, asking farmers on the Punjab side to disperse, but that did not help. As smoke from tear gas clouded the skies and farmers outnumbered security personnel, they were allowed into Haryana around noon.
His forward march was not smooth, however, with frequent barricades and sand-filled trucks on Grand Trunk (GT) Road blocking his path. This caused traffic jams that also affected travelers. But the farmers kept going.
In addition to this clash in Ambala district, there were clashes between protesters and police in Sirsa, Kurukshetra, Fatehabad and Jind districts, governed by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), in Haryana, bordering Punjab led by The congress. In Karnal, there was another confrontation and the police again used water cannons. A farmer was injured, although no arrests were reported.
Congressional leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) Sitaram Yechury and Delhi Prime Minister Arvind Kejriwal were among those who criticized the action of the Haryana police.
However, Haryana Police Chief Manoj Yadava said his force acted with “great restraint”. “Throughout this episode, not only were several members of the police personnel injured, but also the police and private vehicles were damaged,” he said in a statement.
As the tension mounted, Punjab Prime Minister Amarinder Singh and his Haryana counterpart Manohar Lal Khattar exchanged words via Twitter. While Singh asked Khattar why his government was detaining farmers, and the BJP leader told him to stop “inciting” them.
Food Bowl Punjab is at the center of the agitation by farmers against government measures to open up agricultural markets in the country and carry out radical reforms in the agricultural sector, which supports nearly half the population.
Farmers have demanded the repeal of three laws enacted by Parliament in September that together allow agribusinesses to freely trade agricultural produce without restrictions, allow private traders to store large quantities of essential commodities for future sales, and establish new rules for contract farming.
Farmers say the reforms would make them vulnerable to exploitation by large corporations, erode their bargaining power and weaken the government’s minimum support price (MSP) system, which offers growers government-guaranteed prices. mainly for wheat and rice.
The Minister of Agriculture, Narendra Singh Tomar, and the Minister of Railways, Food and Consumer Affairs, Piyush Goyal, held one-day negotiations on November 13 with leaders of various farmer groups in an attempt to end more than two months of politically defiant turmoil. Discussions were inconclusive, but both parties agreed to continue negotiations in the future.
“The new agricultural laws were the necessity of the moment. In the next time, it will bring revolutionary changes. We will talk to farmers on December 3, ”Tomar told ANI on Thursday, reiterating that the Center was ready to talk to farmers and resolve differences.
In the capital, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) announced the stop of trains from neighboring cities in the National Capital Region (NCR) – Gurugram and Faridabad in Haryana, and Noida and Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh – to Delhi on Friday , a decision that could likely impact thousands of interstate travelers at a time when strict restrictions are already in place in border areas. However, it will continue to operate as usual for trains to these cities from Delhi.
From barbed wire on the borders of Haryana and Uttar Pradesh to blocking roads with dump trucks full of mud and sand, Delhi police on Thursday took a series of measures to stop the march of representatives of some 500 farmer groups protesting against three contentious laws. recently enacted by Parliament with the aim of liberalizing the agricultural sector.
During the day, Metro services remained suspended in seven corridors in most parts and normal operations resumed at 5 pm. On the road, increased controls at Delhi’s borders with Haryana and Uttar Pradesh led to heavy traffic jams and confusion among travelers. The border connecting Sonepat of Haryana with Narela of Delhi was closed for three hours at night.
Despite the arrangements, two small groups arrived at Jantar Mantar, the protest site in Delhi, and Manju Ka Tilla in north Delhi. Eish Singhal, DCP-New Delhi, said that 70 farmers and activists were detained in Jantar Mantar and later released. “We have registered a case under section 188 of the IPC (Indian Penal Code) (disobedience to an order of a public official),” Singhal said. He refused to describe them as farmers. “They arrived in cars. Most of them were already in Delhi, ”Singhal added. A group of 35 people from different states landed near Majnu ka Tilla and started a protest. “They had arrived by public transport such as trains and buses. We have detained them and are prosecuting them for not following Covid-19 security protocols, ”said NS Bundela, Deputy Commissioner of Police (central rank).
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