Farmers Suspend Delhi March For Today After Tear Gas Shelling, Agitators At Haryana CM Event Detained — Top Points
Farmers marching towards Delhi faced tear gas shelling at the Punjab-Haryana border. Haryana Police claimed the group didn't match the authorised list of 101 farmers, while Sarwan Singh Pandher contested this claim.
Farmers pressing for their demands, including a legal guarantee for Minimum Support Price (MSP), suspended the 'Delhi Chalo' march for the day after some of them suffered injuries due to tear gas shells at Shambhu along the Punjab-Haryana border on Sunday. At the Punjab-Haryana Shambhu border, a group of 101 farmers resumed their 'Dilli Chalo' march but were swiftly stopped by Haryana Police citing prohibitory orders under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), which bans unlawful assembly in the district.
- Farmer leader Pand Sarwan Singh Pandher informed about suspending the march for today and said, "Today we have decided to withdraw the 'jatha'. 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 One farmer has been admitted to PGI and is in serious condition and 8-9 farmers are injured, so we have withdrawn the 'jatha'.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..."
#WATCH | Farmers' 'Dilli Chalo' march | At the Shambhu border, farmer leader Sarwan Singh Pandher says, "Today we have decided to withdraw the 'jatha'. The agitation will continue today. One farmer has been admitted to PGI and is in serious condition and 8-9 farmers are injured,… pic.twitter.com/YXIGIGxd53
— ANI (@ANI) December 8, 2024 - According to Haryana Police, the group did not match the list of 101 farmers authorised for the march. "We have a list of the names of 101 farmers, and they are not those people—they are not letting us identify them—they are moving ahead as a mob," a police official said, as per news agency ANI.
- Farmer leader Pandher contested this claim, stating, "The 'Jattha' of our 101 farmers and labourers have reached. We have already issued the list. If they (the police) have decided to check the IDs first, they should tell us—we will cooperate. They are using more tear gas today as the wind direction is towards us. We are ready for any kind of sacrifice... It’s the PM who has the solution for our problems. Either he does it or lets us march to Delhi."
- A protesting farmer accused the police of working with incorrect data. "The list they (police) have is wrong... We are trying to sort things out through dialogues, but anyhow we will move ahead," he said, as per ANI.
- Meanwhile, in a symbolic gesture, police sprinkled flower petals on farmers at the site before deploying barricades and using tear gas shells to block their advance.
#WATCH | Police sprinkle flower petals on the farmers at the Punjab-Haryana Shambhu border who are protesting and trying to move ahead as they begin their 'Dilli Chalo' march, today pic.twitter.com/EjIs3vVWsc
— ANI (@ANI) December 8, 2024
- However, visuals also showed tear gas being used at the Punjab-Haryana Shambhu border by police to disperse the farmers protesting and trying to move ahead. Farmers Try To Make Their Way To Delhi Through Barricades, Tear Gas Shells — IN PICS
#WATCH | Latest visuals of tear gas being used at Punjab-Haryana Shambhu border by police to disperse the farmers' protesting and trying to move ahead as they begin their 'Dilli Chalo' march, today pic.twitter.com/qNmNDLAjId
— ANI (@ANI) December 8, 2024
- Regarding the flower petal showering, Pandher alleged that the flowers were laced with chemicals. “Today’s ‘jatha’ is returning. It’s sad how chemicals were present in flowers. Many are injured. We will hold a meeting today. It’s wrong how they attacked by luring us,” he told PTI.
VIDEO | Farmers’ ‘Delhi Chalo’ march: “Today’s ‘jatha’ is returning. It’s sad how chemicals were present in flowers. Many are injured. We will hold a meeting today. It’s wrong how they attacked by luring us,” says farmer leader Sarwan Singh Pandher on media query about police… pic.twitter.com/b8xSTm3ieP
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) December 8, 2024 - Protesters have repeatedly tried to march towards Delhi, with similar attempts on 13 and 21 February thwarted by security forces. The Haryana government recently suspended mobile internet and SMS services in 11 Ambala villages to prevent mobilisation.
Union Minister Nitin Gadkari and Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini were scheduled to attend Sahkar Bharati’s eighth national convention. Farmers protesting near the premises were detained by police.
#WATCH | Punjab | Police detains the farmers protesting outside the premises where Sahkar Bharati's eighth national convention is being organised.
— ANI (@ANI) December 8, 2024
Union Minister Nitin Gadkari and Haryana CM Nayab Singh Saini are scheduled to attend the event. pic.twitter.com/dpY7SSupF2
Hunger Strike by Jailed Farmers In Greater Noida
The Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) revealed that farmers imprisoned in Gautam Buddha Nagar’s District Jail have launched a hunger strike to push for long-standing demands, including a 10 per cent land allotment policy, resolution of Leaseback (Adadi) settlement issues, and reinstatement of the 2013 Land Acquisition law, news agency PTI reported.
The SKM stated, "These farmers were forcibly detained by the administration while peacefully protesting. The hunger strike is peaceful but poses significant health risks. We urge the administration, state government, and Centre to address their demands on priority."
In addition to MSP, the protesting farmers are demanding farm debt waivers, pensions for farmers and labourers, compensation for families of deceased farmers from the 2020-21 protests, and justice for victims of the 2021 Lakhimpur Kheri violence.
Meanwhile, the Haryana Police requested their Punjab counterparts to ensure media personnel are stopped at a safe distance from the protest site to maintain safety and law and order.
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