Protest demanding stringent laws against sacrilege: Heavy police deployment foils demonstration in Samana

Sources said nearly 100 protesters under the banner of Dharam Yuddha Morcha were rounded up in Sangrur district alone from Bhawanigarh and Sullar Ghat areas as they attempted to march towards Samana.

“We were stopped in Patran and we staged our dharna on the road for about three hours,” Manjit Singh Niyal, state committee member of BKU Azad, said. He added that after the sit-in at Patran, the protesters returned to their villages. People were stopped in Nabha as well, he claimed.

Social media influencer Bhana Sidhu, accompanied by supporters and members of BKU Sidhupur and BKU Azad, managed to reach Samana despite barricading. However, nearly 200 protesters, including Bhana Sidhu, were detained following a minor scuffle with police inside the park, according to Manjit Singh.

All the detained farmers in Sangrur and Patiala were released by 8 pm, according to the officials.

Despite extensive barricading, hundreds of protesters reached the park opposite the Nagar Council. A brief scuffle broke out between police and farmers inside the park, following which the protesters were detained.

Meanwhile, a section of demonstrators staged a dharna at Baba Banda Singh Bahadur Chowk in Samana, where talks with the local administration were underway at the time of filing this report.

Sources indicated that efforts are being made to arrange a meeting between protest representatives and the Chief Minister to defuse tensions.

The ongoing agitation, earlier referred to as the ‘Tower Morcha’, was formally renamed “Dharam Yuddha Morcha” on Tuesday. While occasional protest meetings have been taking place at the site, Tuesday’s plan was to establish a pakka morcha, which could not materialise due to police action.

“Tuesday’s dharna was supported by BKU Sidhupur and BKU Azad,” said Jaswinder Singh Longwal, president of BKU Azad.

This marks the third instance in recent weeks where the Punjab government has prevented farmer unions from holding protests. Earlier, on February 6 and February 18, members of BKU Ugrahan were stopped in Bathinda while attempting to stage a dharna outside the deputy commissioner’s office demanding the release of two jailed members. The two were subsequently granted bail by the Punjab and Haryana High Court on February 18.

Condemning the police action in Samana, Sarwan Singh Pandher, coordinator of the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha, said, “The Punjab government is trying to gag the voice of protestors who are seeking justice. In a democracy everyone has the right to protest.”