Members of the Bhartiya Kisan Union blocked National Highway 44 near Kurukshetra in Haryana despite the presence of a heavy police force, deployed to thwart the protest rally proposed by farmers and commission agents at the grain market of Pipli in the district.
The police used light force to disperse the peasants, who were trying to reach the place of the demonstration in defiance of the prohibition orders.
Led by Bhartiya Kisan Union State President Gurnam Singh Chaduni, thousands of Mandi farmers, commissioners and workers were planning a protest rally in Pipli. The district administration, in response, deployed more than 1000 policemen to stop the organization of the rally and also diverted traffic on all roads leading to Pipli.
Agitated farmers, who were prevented from entering Kurukshetra district, blocked traffic on the NH44 heading towards Ambala on the outskirts of Kurukshetra and shouted slogans against the use of police force.
“The government wants to suppress our movement citing the coronavirus as an excuse, but we will continue our fight against anti-farmer decisions,” BKU President Gurnam Singh Chaduni said while addressing the meeting that had blocked the national highway.
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He said the government was forcing farmers to hold protests by bringing ordinances in the name of introducing agricultural reforms.
The farmers are against the three ordinances approved by the union cabinet, namely; the Agricultural Trade and Trade (Promotion and Facilitation) Ordinance 2020, the Farmers’ Agricultural Price Guarantee and Services Agreement (Empowerment and Protection) Ordinance 2020, and the Trade and Promotion Ordinance trade in agricultural products (promotion and facilitation) of 2020, in June of this year. While the government has said that the ordinances will create an environment in which farmers and merchants will have free choice of buying and selling, farmers allege that with these ordinances, the government planned to discontinue the MSP regime.
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The district administration was unable to prevent disruptions caused by the protest despite proper warnings served through village-level meetings by farmers over the past week with the purpose of mobilizing a large gathering on Thursday. .
Kurukshetra Deputy Commissioner Sharandeep Kaur Brar said steps were being taken to remove the NH44 blockade.
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