Three Union ministers are set to engage in talks with farmer leaders in Chandigarh on Thursday after the confrontation between protesters and police at the Punjab-Haryana border enters its second day. The ongoing standoff has been punctuated by further clashes between the two sides. At the Shambhu border point near Ambala, security personnel intermittently fired shells at the 'Delhi Chalo' protesters, who are demanding a minimum support price for their crops.
Tear gas was deployed whenever groups of farmers approached the barricades, while security forces encountered stone-pelting from the protesters, news agency PTI reported.
Similar tensions persisted at the Data Singhwala-Khanauri border in Haryana's Jind district, albeit with a less volatile atmosphere compared to Tuesday, when farmers attempted to breach barriers with their tractors in an effort to push towards Delhi.
- Sarwan Singh Pandher, leader of the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee, confirmed the upcoming meeting with Union ministers Arjun Munda, Piyush Goyal, and Nityanand Rai, scheduled for 5 pm Thursday. This marks the third round of discussions between farmer representatives and the Centre in Chandigarh, following inconclusive talks prior to the march towards Delhi, PTI reported. More On It: ‘We Don’t Want Conflict’: Farmer Leaders To Hold Talks With Modi Govt Over Demands Tomorrow
- Even after the announcement of a third round of dialogue, visuals surfaced indicating that tensions did not subside at the Punjab-Haryana Shambhu Border where security forces resorted to tear gas shelling to disperse the protesting farmers.
- Earlier, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Agriculture Minister Arjun Munda held discussions in Delhi regarding the farmers' grievances, according to sources cited by PTI.
- The Congress reiterated its support for the protest, with party leader Rahul Gandhi expressing solidarity with an injured farmer. His conversation with the injured protester, facilitated by Punjab Congress chief Amarinder Singh Raja Warring, amid the party's stance against what he termed the "dictatorial attitude" of the Narendra Modi government.
- In the face of heightened security measures, commuters at the Singhu border experienced significant disruptions, with the area sealed off and heavy police and paramilitary presence affecting daily routines, PTI reported. Delhi-Sonipat traffic at Singhu and the movement of vehicles to Bahadurgarh through Tikri are suspended, an official told PTI.
- While BJP-led Haryana has restricted protester movement towards Delhi, no such constraints exist in Punjab, governed by the Aam Aadmi Party. Tensions persist as authorities in Punjab raised objections to Haryana's use of drones to disperse tear gas shells over protesting farmers' territories.
The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha are leading the 'Delhi Chalo' agitation, pressing the Centre for various demands, including legislation on MSP, loan waivers, and the implementation of the Swaminathan Commission recommendations.