Police in Punjab on Wednesday set up multiple checkpoints, and stepped up security at all entry points of Chandigarh as it thwarted an attempt by farmers to march to the Union Territory to take part in week-long dharna called by the Samyukta Kisan Morcha. In the process, it detained several senior farmer union leaders who were later released in the evening.
Meanwhile, the farmers launched dharnas at 28 places — the spots where they were stopped by the Punjab Police. Bhartiya Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan) general secretary Sukhdev Singh Kokrikalan said farmers will now not move to Chandigarh. “To decide about the next course of action, a meeting of the SKM has been called in Ludhiana on March 7,” said Kokrikalan.
The SKM, in a statement, however, also warned Mann that his government “will not have enough jail if the farmers of Punjab decide to court arrest to protect the democratic rights of the people”.
Earlier, farmers, who left from various location in Punjab for Chandigarh in tractor-trolleys and other vehicles, were stopped at many places on the highways and other roads. The SKM claimed that hundreds of farmers were detained by the police. They included Joginder Singh Ugrahan, president of Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU) Ugrahan, Balbir Singh Rajewal, Mukesh Chander Sharma, state vice-president of BKU Rajewal, and Buta Singh Shadipur, president of BKU Shadipur. Ugrahan and his supporters have been taken to Chhajli police station in Sangrur.
While farmer Kirpa Singh Nathuwala, a member of Kisan Bhalai Morcha, said that he and five others reached Sector 34 in Chandigarh in private vehicles, several others were prevented from moving towards the city, leading to farmers sitting on the roads in protest at Bhawanigarh and Gharachon in Sangrur, Dhapai and Bhaini Darera in Mansa, Badbar in Barnala, Jethuke in Bathinda etc.
“Despite the Emergency-like situation where hundreds are being taken into police custody, men and women came out on the roads and protested the diktat of Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann.
Farmers taken into custody yesterday have been sent to jail. We are yet to get the exact number of people,” Raminder Singh Patiala, press secretary of Kirti Kisan Union, said. “We are sitting on the roads. Let us see what the CM says now,” he added.
On Tuesday, several SKM leaders were detained by the police even as Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann hit out at the protesting farmers, saying they had turned Punjab into a “state of dharnas”. The farmers were later booked under Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita sections related to breach of peace.
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On Monday, Mann had walked out of a meeting with SKM leaders where they had presented their 18 demands, including minimum support price for crops and ownership rights for hereditary tenant farmers.
On Wednesday, the first batch of trolleys with members of the Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU) was stopped near Hedon village in Ludhiana’s Samrala constituency. Another group of farmers from Patiala was prevented from moving towards Chandigarh as the police parked sand tippers on the Patiala-Chandigarh Road, sources said.
“Around 20 BKU Punjab trolleys have been stopped near Samrala while another batch that started from Moga was stopped near Ajitwal in Moga district,” Gurmeet Singh Mehma, state general secretary of Krantikari Kisan Union, said.
A convoy of about 20 vehicles from Fazilka was stopped near Jagraon in Ludhiana, sources said.
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“Trolleys are going through villages instead of following the main road route. The batches of trolleys are small…not what we had planned earlier. Police have been deployed at all locations,” a farmer union leader said.
Deputy Inspector General of Police (Ropar Range) Harcharan Singh Bhullar said the protesting farmers would not be allowed to reach Chandigarh at any cost. “Wherever any farmer came out (on roads), police of that area stopped them there itself. They were sitting there peacefully,” Bhullar said, adding the situation in Punjab is totally peaceful.
The DIG said some farmers have been rounded up, adding that there was good coordination between Punjab Police and Chandigarh Police.
A police officer said that SKM leaders Ugrahan and Rajewal have been released.
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In a statement, the SKM said about 15,000 farmers started peaceful protests on the streets of Punjab. “The massive participation in today’s protest despite the arrest of 350 farmer leaders by the Punjab Police the day before have filled confidence in the rank and file of the United Kisan Movement of not only Punjab but across India,” it said.
The SKM also said that farmers did not block any road or rail as claimed by CM Mann.
“No law and order problem was created at the behest of farmer organisations. The public faced despair in huge traffic blocks in Chandigarh and across the state not due to the farmers’ struggle but the unwarranted restrictions imposed by the Punjab Police and administration for unlawfully stopping the farmers from going to the state capital,” it said.
The SKM has released memorandum to all the CMs urging them to condemn the “Police Raj” in Punjab and adopt resolutions in the respective assembly to repeal the anti-farmer National Policy Framework on Agricultural Marketing, it said. “The state SKM delegations will submit the memorandum to the respective chief ministers,” it added.
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SKM leader Raminder Singh Patiala dubbed Punjab government’s action against farmers as “undeclared emergency” and said batches of farmers at several places were stopped by police and were detained.
“The Bhagwant Mann government has shown that it is rattled and tried to suppress farmers’ movement. It is our constitutional right to raise our voice in Chandigarh,” said Patiala.
Farmer leader Ugrahan in a video message condemned police action against farmers. He said their demands are related to Punjab. Ugrahan on Tuesday had called upon farmer leaders to head towards Chandigarh. He had asked farmers to sit at a vacant place if they were stopped by police on their way to Chandigarh, telling them not to block any road.
Chandigarh Police put up barricades at the Chandigarh-Mohali border points to prevent protesting farmers from entering the joint capital of Punjab and Haryana.
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Security was beefed up at the entry points to Chandigarh from Mohali. Policemen checked vehicles especially buses coming from Punjab and even verified people going to Chandigarh. Police also deployed anti-riot vehicles, ambulances and fire brigades at several places.
The intensive checking disrupted traffic from Mohali to Chandigarh at the border points, leading to a long queue of vehicles, causing inconvenience to commuters.
Chandigarh Superintendent of Police Geetanjali Khandelwal said police personnel were deployed at all the border points. “Barricading has been put up and strict checking is being done. We want people to face minimum inconvenience. Wherever we suspect traffic snarls we have directed traffic routes,” she told reporters.
The Chandigarh administration has denied permission to farmers to hold their sit-in at Sector 34 in the city.
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