After a brief overnight ceasefire, Punjab’s protesting farmer unions resumed their ‘Dilli Chalo’ march towards the National Capital. Meanwhile, Delhi’s borders have been further fortified, with a significant deployment of security personnel and barricades erected across all possible entry points. This follows chaotic scenes that unfolded along the Punjab-Haryana border marked by clashes between protestors and security forces, resulting in the latter resorting to teargas shell firing, including some delivered via drones, to thwart the protestors’ advance. The clashes led to dozens of injuries.
A substantial deployment of police and paramilitary forces, along with multi-layered barricading, has been implemented to seal the national capital’s borders at Singhu, Tikri, and Ghazipur.
Central Delhi has been placed under heavy security cover, with personnel equipped in anti-riot gear strategically stationed and metal and concrete barricades regulating access to several key roads.
In response to the farmers’ march towards the national capital, on Tuesday, the Delhi Metro took measures to regulate passenger entry and exit at nine stations, temporarily closing some gates for several hours.
Security forces resorted to tear gas to deter thousands of farmers, demanding minimum crop prices, from advancing towards New Delhi following unsuccessful negotiations with the government. Thick clouds of tear gas were dispersed to disperse protesters at the Shambhu border near Ambala, located approximately 200 kilometers north of the capital. Additionally, drones were utilized by the police to drop tear gas canisters from the air.
While the police are not actively hindering the movement of farmers from the state towards Delhi, a state of high alert has been declared in Punjab, with approximately 70% of the entire state police force instructed to remain on duty in the field.
The farmers are demanding several key concessions from the government. Among their primary demands is a guaranteed Minimum Support Price (MSP) for 23 crops, along with the waiver of their debts and the withdrawal of cases filed against them during the 2020-21 farmers’ agitation. This agitation, which lasted for a year on Delhi’s borders, concluded only after the repeal of the three contentious farm laws. Despite two rounds of meetings between farmer leaders and the government in an attempt to avert the march, no agreement has been reached.
On 13th feb, the Punjab and Haryana High Court ruled in favor of the farmers’ right to protest, highlighting their entitlement as Indian citizens to freedom of movement. While addressing two Public Interest Litigations (PILs) related to the agitation, the court also stressed the responsibility of state governments to ensure the safety and convenience of all citizens and to take measures to prevent any inconvenience caused to them. The farmers are staging a large-scale protest to pressure the government into addressing their demands.
Key among these demands is legislation to guarantee a Minimum Support Price (MSP), a requirement that they had insisted upon in 2021 before agreeing to end their protest against the now-repealed farm laws. Additionally, they are advocating for the implementation of the Swaminathan Commission’s recommendations, pensions for farmers and agricultural workers, and the forgiveness of farm debts. The farmers are also calling for justice for the victims of the violence in Lakhimpur Kheri.
