Farmers' Protest: Ambala-Chandigarh Highway Re-Opens After 3 Weeks

The Ambala administration opened a single lane of the Ambala-Chandigarh highway near Sadopur late Monday night, removing barricades to facilitate traffic movement, officials stated.

Previously, commuters had to navigate various diversions to reach their destinations.

Source : PTI

New Delhi: Authorities announced on Tuesday the reopening of the Ambala-Chandigarh national highway, which had been closed for the past three weeks to prevent protesting farmers from Punjab from marching to Delhi, reported news agency PTI.

The Ambala administration opened a single lane of the Ambala-Chandigarh highway near Sadopur late Monday night, removing barricades to facilitate traffic movement, officials stated.

However, the border between Haryana and Punjab at Shambu near Ambala remains barricaded, as per the PTI report.

Previously, commuters had to navigate various diversions to reach their destinations.

Protesting farmers have been stationed at the Shambhu and Khanauri border points after security forces halted their "Delhi Chalo" march. Their march, which began on February 13, was stopped by security personnel, resulting in clashes at the Shambhu and Khanauri border points along the Haryana-Punjab border.

The deadlock between farmers and the Centre over their various demands remains unsolved as the farmers rejected the February 18 offer by the Centre.

The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (KMM) are leading the 'Delhi Chalo' march, pressing the government to meet their demands, including a legal guarantee of Minimum Support Price (MSP) for crops.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court on Monday allowed the withdrawal of the petition filed by Agnostos Theos, MD of the Sikh Chamber of Commerce on Kisan Andolan seeking to remove all barricading on borders and stop violence against protesting farmers. 

A bench led by Justice Surya Kant said that such cases should not be filed for publicity purposes.

"Do not file such petitions for publicity only, based on newspaper reports. The Punjab & Haryana High Court is also seized of it and has given directions. Be careful...do your own research also, these are complex issues," the bench had remarked.

The PIL also sought unblocking of social media accounts and FIRs against government officials indulging in "illegal acts" against farmers. It further sought directions to the Centre to consider reasonable demands of protesting farmers.

The petition had further asked the court to pass directions to the National Human Rights Commission to enquire and submit a report on alleged human rights violations by the Police against the protesting farmers.

The bench, however, allowed the petitioner to withdraw the plea with liberty to seek remedies as per law.