Chandigarh:
The Punjab Police on the call of the United Kisan Morcha (SKM) on Wednesday thwarted the efforts of farmers to travel to Chandigarh for a week -long dharna. The police had set up several investigation outposts across the state and increased security at all entry points in Chandigarh.
Meanwhile, a farmer leader said that SKM has withdrawn its proposed Chandigarh march and he will decide on his future step in Ludhiana on March 7.
SKM, a group of more than thirty farmer organizations, had called for a sit -in in Chandigarh from March 5 in support of its various demands. These demands of farmers include the demand for the purchase of six crops on the minimum support price (MSP) by the state government.
On Wednesday morning, the Punjab Police, who left for Chandigarh by tractor-trolleys and other vehicles, was stopped by the Punjab Police at many places on highways and other roads.
The SKM strongly condemned the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government of the state to stop the farmers going to Chandigarh to raise their voice in support of their demands.
SKM leaders claimed that many farmers going to Chandigarh were detained by the police, while many others started protesting where they were stopped.
Punjab Police Deputy Inspector General (Ropar Range) HS Bhullar said that the protesting farmers will not be allowed to reach Chandigarh at any cost.
Bhullar said, “Wherever the farmers (on the roads) came out, the police of that area stopped them there. They are sitting there peacefully. ”He said that the situation in Punjab is completely peaceful. The DIG said that some farmers have been detained. He said that there is good coordination between Punjab Police and Chandigarh Police. SKM leaders Joginder Singh Ugrah and Balbir Singh Rajewal, who were detained, have been released.
Sukhdev Singh Kokikalan, general secretary of Bharti Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan), said that farmers will no longer go to Chandigarh. Kokikalan said, “A meeting of SKM has been called in Ludhiana on March 7 to take a decision about the next step.”
Farmer leader Burj Singh Burjgil claimed that the farmers ‘dharna’ in about 18 such places where the police stopped them. SKM said in a statement that around 15,000 farmers started a peaceful protests on the streets of Punjab.
The SKM also said that the farmers did not disrupt any road or railroad as the Chief Minister (Bhagwant) Mann claimed on Tuesday. A heavy police force was deployed, barricade and sand -laden trucks were also parked in Gharachon area of Sangrur to prevent farmers from going to Chandigarh.
Jatinder Singh, District President of the Revolutionary Farmers Union in Moga, said that while going to Chandigarh, the police stopped him and other farmers in Ajitwal in Moga district. Singh claimed that some of them were also detained by the police.
The protesters also raised slogans against the Bhagwant Man Sarkar of Punjab for not allowing Chandigarh to go to Chandigarh. The farmers said that the police also stopped him from going to Chandigarh in Samrala. According to a senior police official in Patiala, the police will ensure that the protesting farmers do not move towards Chandigarh and ordinary citizens do not have to face any kind of inconvenience.
In order to prevent farmers from going towards Chandigarh, the police put barricade in Chuhar Chak area of Moga. A police official said that 100 policemen have been deployed at the outpost and every vehicle is being investigated to prevent farmers from going to Chandigarh.
In Sangrur, the police put up blocks at many places including Gharachon and Bhawanigarh. Policemen were deployed at the runaway Majra toll plaza in Kharar. Meanwhile, SKM leader Raminder Singh Patiala termed the Punjab government’s action against the farmers as an “undisclosed emergency” and said that in many places the groups of the farmers were stopped and detained by the police.
Patiala said, “Bhagwant Maan Sarkar has shown that it is nervous and has tried to suppress the farmers’ movement. It is our constitutional right to raise our voice in Chandigarh.
Farmer leader Ugrahan condemned police action against farmers in a video message. He said that his demands are related to Punjab.
Ugrahan on Tuesday called upon the farmer leaders to move towards Chandigarh. He had told the farmers that if the police stop them while going to Chandigarh, they should sit on the empty place and do not block any road.
The police placed a blocker on the Chandigarh-Mohali border to prevent the protesting farmers from entering Chandigarh, the joint capital of Punjab and Haryana.
Security was increased on the points entering Chandigarh from Mohali. Policemen investigated vehicles coming from Punjab, especially buses. He also searched the people going to Chandigarh. Police have also deployed anti-riot vehicles, ambulances and fire vehicles at many places. Due to a thorough investigation on the boundary posts, traffic was disrupted from Mohali to Chandigarh, which led to long queues of vehicles and inconveniences to passengers.
Passengers on Chandigarh-Zarakpur road and some other roads expressed disappointment over traffic jams. A passenger coming from Ambala to Chandigarh said that he was implicating in traffic jam for more than an hour. Chandigarh Superintendent of Police Geetanjali Khandelwal said that police personnel have been deployed at all border posts.
He told reporters, “Barricades have been installed and strict investigation is being done. We want people to have the least inconvenience. Wherever we are feared traffic jam, we have changed the roads of traffic. ”The Chandigarh administration has not allowed the farmers to sit in Sector-34.
On Tuesday, Mann targeted several farmer organizations to protest every other day and accused them of making Punjab a “state of dharna” and causing heavy damage to them. Man on Monday condemned the farmers’ organizations after failing to discuss the demands of the farmers and SKM leaders to discuss the demands of the farmers.
The SKM now led the 2020 movement against the three agricultural laws that have been canceled. It is demanding withdrawal of the draft of the National Policy Formulations (NPFAM) on agricultural marketing, giving legal guarantee of minimum support price (MSP), implementing the state’s agricultural policy and purchasing six crops on MSP by the state government.
Farmers’ organizations are also demanding a law for debt solution, payment of sugarcane dues, “forcible” acquisition of land for Bharatmala projects and also demanding jobs and compensation to the families of farmers who lost their lives during the farmer movement in 2020-21.
(Tagstotranslate) NDTV News
