Days after barbed wire fences, concrete barricades and makeshift bus barriers were erected in Ghazipur, on the Delhi-Uttar Pradesh border, to virtually jail farmers protesting farm laws, similar measures are being implemented. in Singhu, on the border between Delhi and Haryana. .
Delhi police are excavating vast stretches of NH-44 to build rows of barbed wire embedded in concrete, and are laying strips of sharp nails and iron bars in the middle of the road, those pieces that have not been dug up, to stop farmers and their tractors from entering the national capital.
The police have also erected massive shipping containers as temporary walls, stopped all traffic for several kilometers in all directions, and deployed a huge force, including armed officers. They also prevented the media from entering and suspended Internet services since last week.
“The protest sites look like international borders. It’s as if we came from Pakistan. On the one hand, they (the government) want us to speak, and on the other hand, they are doing everything possible to disengage us (from the city),” he said Kulwant Singh Sandhu, a peasant leader to the PTI news agency.
In recent days, this has become the norm along the Delhi border, with barbed wire barriers, strips of iron rods and concrete walls built to prevent farmers from advancing into the city.
Sections of NH-44 have been excavated to place barbed wire barriers and now it resembles a war zone
The escalation in containment measures comes after last week’s tractor rally descended into chaos; A group of protesters deviated from the course that farmers and police had agreed upon, storming the Red Fort complex and clashing with police at the ITO-Nangloi junction.
That violence, in which a farmer was killed and more than 300 policemen injured, came after protesters and tractors stormed through police barricades hours before they were allowed to enter.
Delhi Police Commissioner SN Shrivastava pointed that out when asked about the new measures.
“I am surprised that when tractors were used … the police were attacked … barricades were broken on January 26, no questions were asked. What did we do now? We have just reinforced the barricades so that they are not broken again”, said. he said Tuesday.
Row after row of police barriers, concrete walls and barbed wire fences have locked up farmers
The authorities have also suspended internet services in Haryana, where the farmers are gathered, although it works a few hundred meters away, where the police are concentrated.
The farmers have also alleged that the water tankers have been blocked, but have reiterated that these “attacks” will not break their spirits. Samyukt Kisan Morcha said that “… digging trenches … fixing nails … barbed wire fences … are part of multiple attacks (by the government).”
These measures have drawn strong criticism from supporters of farmers and the opposition, for whom Congressman Rahul Gandhi has led the charge.
ये यूपी दिल्ली बार्डर है। pic.twitter.com/IWJRAneoTt
– Umashankar Singh उमाशंकर सिंह (@umashankarsingh) February 1, 2021
Yesterday, Gandhi lashed out at the government for “crushing” farmers and urged them to “build bridges, not walls.” Today he warned the government that farmers would not back down.
Tens of thousands of farmers have entrenched themselves since the end of November, and more join them every day, in their battle to force the repeal of laws that they say will put their livelihoods at risk. The center insists these laws will help farmers and has refused to remove them. However, he has offered a temporary stay.
His protest caught the attention of global celebrities on Monday, when international pop star Rihanna tweeted, “Why aren’t we talking about this?”
Rihanna’s tweet sparked a wave of support and also a strong response from the government, calling it “sensational.”
With input from PTI
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