Farmers protest: Protesting farmers on Sunday afternoon suspended their 'Delhi Chalo' march for the day after eight of them suffered injuries in tear gas shelling by Haryana Police at Shambhu along the Punjab-Haryana border.
Farmer leader from Punjab Sarwan Singh Pandher said at least eight farmers were injured, with one of them taken to the Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) in Chandigarh.
"Today we have decided to withdraw the 'jatha' (group of 101 farmers). The agitation will continue today. One farmer has been admitted to PGI and is in serious condition and 8-9 farmers are injured, so we have withdrawn the 'jatha'. After the meeting, we will tell you about the future program," said Pandher.
Farmers' 'Delhi Chalo' march stopped at barricades, teargas shells fired
A 'jatha' (group) of 101 farmers resumed its foot march to Delhi Sunday afternoon from the Shambhu protest site on the Punjab-Haryana border, but was soon halted by a multilayered barricading erected by the Haryana security personnel. Teargas shells were lobbed and water jets were shot through cannons to disperse the protesters after they reached the barricades.
Ambala police had earlier said the farmers' outfits may march to Delhi only after getting permission from the national capital administration. The group, dubbed as 'marjeevras' (someone willing to die for a cause), was marching for a legal guarantee for Minimum Support Price before being stopped only a few metres away.
DSP Shahabad Ramkumar said, "The team has been deployed here since morning...We gave clear instructions that we will check their (farmers) identity and permission and only then will we allow them to move forward...They disagreed...we want them to maintain peace and enter after taking permission..."
Pandher said their protest reached 300 days on Sunday. Farmers under the banner of the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (non-political) and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha have been camping at Shambhu and Khanauri border points between Punjab and Haryana since February 13 after their march to Delhi was stopped by security forces.
What farmers are demanding?
The farmers have been pressing for various demands, including a legal guarantee for Minimum Support Price (MSP). Besides MSP, the farmers are also demanding a farm debt waiver, pension for farmers and farm labourers, no hike in electricity tariff, withdrawal of police cases (against farmers), and "justice" for the victims of the 2021 Lakhimpur Kheri violence.
Reinstatement of the Land Acquisition Act, 2013 and compensation to the families of farmers who died during the previous agitation in 2020-21 are also part of their demands.
(With agencies input)
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