Facing the heat: AAP MLAs being confronted by protesting farmers, city residents across Punjab
Punjab Assembly Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan was interrupted mid-speech when a farmer stood up and bluntly said that Sandhwan knew nothing about dairy farming.
3 min read
Sukhveer Singh Maiserkhana being questioned by BKU Sidhupur leaders at Balloh village of Bathinda on Friday. (Express Photo)It’s protest season again in Punjab – only this time, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders are on the receiving end.
On April 8, during a farmers’ training camp in Faridkot, Punjab Assembly Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan was interrupted mid-speech when a farmer stood up and bluntly said that Sandhwan knew nothing about dairy farming. Known for his calm demeanour, Sandhwan did not take offence.
However, the reaction was very different when Punjab Agriculture Minister Gurmeet Singh Khudian faced a similar situation in Muktsar on April 5. Nirmal Singh from Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) Sidhupur interrupted him with questions about paddy varieties. The police immediately detained Nirmal Singh, booking him under Sections 126 and 170 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS). He was jailed and released after four days upon furnishing bail.
On Thursday, Maur MLA Sukhveer Singh Maiserkhana was also confronted by BKU Sidhupur members while he was en route to an event under the ‘Sikhya Kranti’ program. Despite his plea to raise slogans only after he left, the farmers protested loudly, expressing anger over the March 19 police crackdown that cleared protest dharnas at Shambhu and Khanauri borders. Farmers alleged that their trolleys and belongings went missing during the operation.
Similar scenes unfolded in Dasuya under the Jalandhar district, and Bhadaur constituency, located in the Barnala district. AAP MLA Labh Singh Ugoke was grilled by farmers demanding an inquiry into the “missing trolleys”. Ugoke responded that the government had many other responsibilities.
Sarwan Singh Pandher, coordinator of Kisan Mazdoor Morcha, said, “As BJP leaders were questioned in 2020 and 2022, now it’s AAP’s turn. CM Bhagwant Mann always said the public must question those in power – now he must answer.” He added that farmers had planned to question Mann and AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal in Amritsar on April 9, but were not allowed to do so.
Kaka Singh Kotra, general secretary, BKU Sidhupur, also condemned Nirmal Singh’s arrest, calling it an attack on the democratic right to question. “Like the BJP, the AAP must also be ready with answers,” he said.
The questions – mostly raised by members of SKM (Non-Political) and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha – focus on a wide range of issues: the disappearance of trolleys during police action, the state’s stance on Minimum Support Price, law and order, civic concerns, and pending cases against farmers, including those charged with attempt to murder for stopping Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s convoy in January 2022.
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