Farmers' Protest: Agriculture Minister Invites Farmers for Talks on December 3 as Protesters Reach Delhi

Farmers’ Protest: Hours after Delhi Police allowed entry in the national capital to farmers, Minister of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Narendra Singh Tomar said the government has called the farmer bodies for another round of talks on December 3. “I appeal to the farmers to give up their protests and come  and talk to us. We have made laws for the benefit of farmers and this govt is pro-farmer,” he said. Earlier, in the day, Delhi Police allowed farmers to enter the national capital through the Tikri border to hold their demonstrations at the Nirankari Samagam Ground in Burari area.

After braving water cannons and clashing with security personnel, thousands of farmers started entering the national capital from the Tikri border around 3 pm. They were escorted to the protest venue by police personnel amid tight security. Some farmers from Punjab, on their way to Delhi for protests, have settled down at Singhu border as they plan for further action. “We’ve got food rations for 6 months. We’ll go back after getting rid of the black agriculture laws which are against farmers,” says a protester

Delhi government officials reviewed the arrangements at Nirankari Samagam Ground in Burari, where the farmers are going to gather for protest. Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) legislators have extended their support to farmers protesting against the Centre’s farm laws and said these “dark laws” must be withdrawn. They also said that the farmers, mainly from Punjab, reached Delhi after “much struggle”, facing teargas shells, water canons and lathicharge by police at various border points along their way to the national capital.

The Delhi traffic police had shut the border for vehicular traffic as thousands of farmers resumed their ‘Delhi Chalo’ march after spending the night in Panipat. Visuals showed protesters pelting bricks and stone in Tikri, while Delhi-Gurugram border is witnessing massive traffic jam as police check vehicles. Rapid Action Force in riot gear have also been deployed in large numbers in Singhu.

On Thursday, the protesters braved tear gas shells and water cannons to break through police barricades at several places on the Punjab-Haryana border while heading to the national capital. Marching through Haryana where there were joined by local farmers, the farmers decided to stop for the night at Panipat close to the national capital. Delhi Metro services from neighbouring cities to Delhi will remain suspended on Friday.

Here are all the latest updates on farmers’ protest:

* Farmers in Uttar Pradesh staged sit-ins and demonstrations at many places in the state, including Lucknow. Other places hit by farmers’ stir included Muzaffarnagar, Meerut, Baghpat and Gautam Budh Nagar in western UP, besides Jhansi and Jalaun in its Bundelkhand region, where the peasants’ gathering on various roads resulted in considerable blockades and traffic disruptions.

* Hundreds of western Uttar Pradesh farmers responded to the Delhi Chalo call to protest against the three central farm laws. On a Bharatiya Kisan Union call to join the protest in Delhi, the farmers belonging to Meerut, Muzaffarnagar, Baghpat, Gautam Buddh Nagar and other western UP districts reached the Eastern Peripheral Expressway in Greater Noida on Friday afternoon, when they were stopped by the police.

* Former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda condemned police action and said, “Farmers shouldn’t have been treated so roughly. Using tear gas on farmers who already had tears in their eyes. Farmers’ demands are right, govt should heed to them & resolve issues instantly. I ask people of Haryana to treat farmers with care.”

* Police removed barricades at Shambhu border between Haryana and Punjab, near Ambala, as farmers have been allowed to enter Delhi.

* A farmer was killed and two others were injured as the tractor-trolley in which they were travelling to the national capital was hit by a truck in Haryana’s Bhiwani district, said police. The incident occurred at Mundhal in Bhiwani district on early Friday when the truck hit the tractor at a police barricade, they said.

* At the Delhi-Gurugram border, there was heavy traffic congestion due to checking of vehicles by police.

* Aam Aadmi Party’s Burari MLA Sanjeev Jha met Delhi Police officials and asked them to ensure farmers, who are protesting against the Centre’s farm laws, do not face any hardships during their demonstration at the Nirankari ground in his constituency.

* Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh welcomed the decision allowing farmers to enter the national capital and hold peaceful agitation. “I welcome the Centre’s decision to allow farmers to enter Delhi to exercise their democratic right to protest. They should also now initiate immediate talks to address farmers’ concerns on the #FarmLaws and resolve the simmering issue,” Amarinder Singh said in a tweet.

* The Northern Railways said two trains were cancelled, five trains short terminated while five others were diverted in view of the protest.

* Delhi police has completely shut Tikri border for traffic movement. “Traffic intending to go towards Haryana is also closed. All motorists are advised to avoid this route in view of the protest by Kishan Sangharsh committee,” traffic police tweeted.

* Some commuters complained that they are facing problems commuting to Delhi as traffic came to a halt on Delhi-Panipat Highway due to road blockade. “I’m coming from Jammu and was supposed to reach Delhi on Thursday morning evening. We have no updates so far,” news agency ANI quoted a commuter as saying.

* In a major late night development, the Bharti Kisan Union Ekta-Ugrahan also decided to start their journey from the Khanauri border in Punjab’s Sangrur district on Friday. BKU-Ugrahan President Joginder Ugrahan said: “If we are not allowed to cross Haryana and head towards Delhi, our protest destination will be the border points for a week.”

* Meanwhile, Punjab legislators Parminder Dhindsa and Sukhpal Khera were taken into preventive custody by Delhi Police.

* Earlier in the day, several protesters and policemen were injured as farmers broke barricades and threw them down from a bridge ahead of the Punjab-Haryana border in Shambhu in Punjab’s Patiala and near Haryana’s Ambala.

* Bracing overnight rains and chilly winds, thousands of protesting farmers assembled at various places along the Haryana-Punjab borders on Thursday morning to head towards the national capital for their ‘Dilli Chalo’ protest, but were stopped by the Haryana Police.

* Thousands of farmers had been staging sit-in protests ahead of the Dabwali barrier between Punjab’s Bathinda and Haryana’s Sirsa districts and at Khanauri border in Sangrur district, awaiting the decision by their leaders to move towards Delhi.

* While activists of the Bharti Kisan Union Ekta-Ugrahan and Sidhupur factions had been camping on the border at Khanauri and Moonak, respectively, since Wednesday evening, other farmer unions changed their plans and decided to head for Delhi from other entry points, like Shambhu.

* A huge contingent of police comprising the Rapid Action Force had been deployed at all entry points in Haryana, while residents of several towns located along the Punjab-Haryana border faced a harrowing time due to the heavy deployment of the security forces and snapping of the bus services in the past 24 hours.

* Unfazed by the heavy security deployment and barricading on the highway with mounds of earth and huge rocks, protesting farmer Gurdev Singh told the media at the Shambhu border that “We will break all the barricades if we were not allowed to move ahead.”

* Farmers said they were ready to face bullets also. Despite the use of water cannons and tear gas, the protesting farmers, comprising men and women — both young and old — and school and college students riding tractor-trailers, cars and motorcycles, managed to enter Haryana from Shambhu.

* Angry farmers threw stones at security forces deployed to control the crowd at the Shambhu border. They were later joined by thousands of their counterparts from Haryana. As they reached Kurukshetra district, the local farmers joined them. As per the police estimates, around 300,000 farmers from both states are set to reach Delhi.

* The farmers affiliated to 33 organisations are part of the United Farmers Front, an all-India body of over 470 farmers’ unions that will participate in the indefinite protest in the national capital.

* Appealing to the agitating farmers, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said: “Will leave politics if there’s trouble on MSP (minimum support price).” He also blamed his Punjab counterpart Amarinder Singh for “inciting the farmers”.

* Reacting to his accusations, Amarinder Singh replied on Twitter: “Shocked at your response. It’s the farmers who’ve to be convinced on MSP, not me. You should’ve tried to talk to them before their ‘Dilli Chalo’. And if you think I’m inciting farmers then why are Haryana farmers also marching to Delhi?”

* Meanwhile, condemning the use of water cannon and tear gas, former Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal said: “Today is Punjab’s 26/11. We are witnessing the end of the right to democratic protest. The Akali Dal condemns the Haryana government the Centre for choosing to repress the peaceful farmer movement.”

* He said the battle for the rights of Punjab farmers cannot be throttled by using water cannons against them. Supporting the protest by farmers, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said the peaceful demonstration was a constitutional right of the farmers.

* The Delhi Police has already asked the farmers not to enter Delhi as they don’t have permission to protest in the city. Farmers protesting against the farm laws have expressed apprehension that these laws would pave the way for the dismantling of the minimum support price system, leaving them at the mercy of big corporate entities.

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