Mundlana mahapanchayat stands by protesting wrestlers

Several local farmer leaders have already addressed the gathering. (Express Photo)

Sunday’s mahapanchayat is the third such event in the past four days in support of the protesting wrestlers. Before this, a mahapanchayat was held at Soram in Uttar Pradesh’s Muzaffarnagar on June 1 followed by another such event in Kurukshetra under Haryana on June 3. The back-to-back mahapanchayats are an indication of growing support for the wrestlers in the region, said political observers.

The protesting wrestlers are led by Vinesh Phogat, Bajrang Punia, and Sakshi Malik.

Haryana’s farmer organisations and khap panchayats have been standing by the agitation since the beginning but support for the agitators has grown after the protesting wrestlers were ‘manhandled’ by the Delhi Police on May 28.

Gurnam Singh Chaduni and several other farmer leaders were detained on May 28 to prevent them from joining the wrestlers’ protest. When the wrestlers were going to immerse their medals in the River Ganga on May 30, Chaduni had urged them not to do so. Chaduni had sought time till June 4 to hold a ‘state-level panchayat’ in support of the protesting wrestlers at Mundlana.