AFTER FACING a day of tear-gas shelling from Haryana Police at the Shambhu border point in Punjab, protesting farmers on Sunday evening suspended their foot march to Delhi by a day as Haryana administration officials met their leaders and assured them of talks. The officials met leaders of the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (KMM) and Sanyukt Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and assured them that they will work towards an amicable solution to their demands after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Haryana on Monday. “Ambala Deputy Commissioner Parth Gupta, SSP Nanak Singh, and SP Surinder Singh Bhoria met us at Rajpura in Punjab (13 km from Shambhu),” said KMM coordinator Sarwan Singh Pandher. “They asked us to wait for a day as the Haryana administration is occupied with the PM’s visit on Monday. They also informed us that we cannot proceed to Delhi without permission from Delhi Police.” “We will wait for a day to see the response from the Haryana administration and decide our next steps accordingly,” he said. Earlier in the day, the second Marjeevda Jatha (someone willing to die for a cause) of 101 farmers faced intense police action, including heavy tear-gas shelling and water cannons from the Haryana side, at the heavily barricaded Shambhu border point as they resumed their march. Six farmers were injured in the police action. One of them was referred to PGI Chandigarh for treatment. The farmers began their march from their protest site at noon, aiming to reach the first barricade, a cemented wall about 500 metres away. At the barricade, Haryana Police personnel showered flower petals on them but said they won’t be allowed to enter the state without permission to stage a protest in Delhi. The police also termed as “fake” a list provided by the farmer unions that contained names of those who were part of the jatha. They said the names in the list did not match with the identities of those who were actually at the barricade. The farm union leaders denied the claim, asserting transparency in organising the jathas. As the situation escalated, the police used water cannons and fired tear-gas shells around 12.30 pm to disperse the gathering. The tear-gas shelling continued intermittently for three hours. Between the rounds of tear-gas shelling, there were mixed signals from the Haryana Police, which offered tea, biscuits, and water to the farmers while also playing Gurbani on loudspeakers. Harpreet Singh, a farmer, said, “In the same breath, they lob tear-gas shells. What are they trying to achieve?” IGP (Ambala range) Sibash Kabiraj said the police used force as the farmers tried to remove the barricade at the Shambhu border. “Nobody will be allowed to take law in their hands. Action will be taken if anyone violates the rules,” he said. In a statement, Haryana Police said “no responsible farmer leader” was present at the border point. The protesters repeatedly tried to remove the barricades. “The policemen showered flowers on the farmers apart from taking appropriate action to maintain law and order,” it said. Punjab Police initially restricted mediapersons from reaching the barricades following a directive from the Haryana DGP. “It seemed like an attempt to prevent visuals from being captured, but they couldn’t stop it,” alleged Ranjeet Singh Raju, president of the Rajasthan-based Gramin Kisan-Mazdoor Sangathan. At 3.30 pm, the farmer leaders decided to call the jatha back. A meeting of the KMM and SKM (Non-Political) is scheduled Monday afternoon to decide the next course of action. Farmers have been protesting at the Shambhu and Khanauri borders on NH-44 and NH-52, respectively, since February 13, demanding a legal guarantee for Minimum Support Price (MSP) and a loan waiver among others. However, the Haryana government has not allowed them to proceed toward Delhi. Sunday’s Dilli Chalo march marked the second attempt by the KMM and SKM (Non-Political) to cross the border since December 6. During the first attempt, 16 farmers were injured in police action. KMM's Pandher alleged, “The tear gas was deadlier and more poisonous today. The main targets were mediapersons and elderly farmers. To our shock, we heard Haryana Police over loudspeakers referring to mediapersons as ‘fake media’ and ‘Khalistani media'. Until now, such remarks were directed only at the protesting farmers.” Among the injured was 65-year-old Resham Singh from Bathinda, who sustained a head injury from a tear gas shell and was referred to PGI Chandigarh. Karnail Singh Lung, a farmer in his 70s from Patiala, inhaled toxic fumes while rescuing the injured. He is receiving oxygen support at the civil hospital in Rajpura. Three more members of the rescue team — Dilbagh Singh Gill, Harbhajan Singh, and Kulwinder Singh Atwal — were also hospitalised after inhaling fumes. Sukhwinder Kaur, general secretary of BKU Krantikari, said, “The Haryana government played games with farmers today. First, they threw flower petals on us, then followed it with tear gas..” Tejveer Singh, spokesperson for Shaheed Bhagat Singh-Haryana, criticised the use of tear gas. “The rules clearly state that the shells should not be thrown directly at people, but they were. It is inhumane,” he said. Farmer leaders said they remain open to talks, but the central government has not responded to their demands. BJP spokesperson Pritpal Singh Baliawal said his party approached key farmer leaders two days ago to collect their list of demands for representation to the Centre but they did not provide one. (With inputs from Sukhbir Siwach in Chandigarh)
