Farmers' Protest: BJP Leaders Detained For 12 Hours In Patiala Released After HC's Order

In Patiala, protesting farmers gheraoed the house of a BJP worker in which several leaders were present. The lawyer of the BJP leaders petitioned the court that the mob had illegally detained them.

Chandigarh: 12 BJP leaders were detained by protesting farmers for nearly 12 hours at a house in Rajpura in Patiala. They were released early morning on Monday following the orders of the Punjab and Haryana High Court. On Sunday, protesting farmers gheraoed the house of a BJP worker in which several party leaders were present, including Subhash Sharma, BJP's Punjab unit general secretary, and Patiala in charge Bhupesh Agarwal.

The BJP leaders, through their counsel, filed a petition in the Punjab and Haryana High Court stating they were illegally detained by a mob at a house in Rajpura.

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The court on Sunday night directed the Punjab Police to ensure that the petitioners were safely evacuated with adequate security and no harm is caused to them. 

Patiala Deputy Superintendent of Police (Rajpura Rural) Jaswinder Singh said that the BJP leaders were taken out of the house at around 4 am on Monday. The police resorted to a minor lathi charge to disperse the protesters.

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Earlier, protesting farmers had allegedly disrupted a district-level BJP meeting in Rajpura on Sunday, following which party leaders and workers gathered at a party worker's residence. Punjab BJP general secretary Sharma said that the protesters had also cut off the power supply.

Sharma alleged that apart from the police van, the protesters also damaged the vehicles of some BJP leaders. He also alleged that the protesters threw bricks at him when he was being escorted out of the house by the police. Sharma said that they will register an FIR in this matter.

On the other hand, the farmers alleged that BJP workers used inappropriate language against the protesters, and BJP leader Bhupesh Agarwal's security guard allegedly pointed a pistol at them. They were demanding an apology from BJP for this.

Earlier, a group of farmers opposing the Centre's new agricultural laws had chased and allegedly beat up local BJP leader Shanti Sapra. Then, Sharma went to Patiala to know the well-being of the leaders and other activists who were victims of protesters' outrage. Then a large number of farmers reached the house where Sharma and other leaders gathered and besieged them.