Ahead of mahapanchayat in wrestlers’ support, massive crackdown on farm leaders in Haryana, several detained

Haryana BKU (Chaduni) spokesperson Rakesh Bains told The Indian Express that the police detained Chaduni on Saturday night itself. Anticipating that a large number of farmers may go to Delhi to attend the mahapanchayat, policemen reached the homes of farmer leaders early Sunday. The police have also installed checkpoints at various places to halt the movement of farmers towards Delhi.

Ahead of mahapanchayat in wrestlers’ support, massive crackdown on farm leaders in Haryana, several detained#WrestlerProtest pic.twitter.com/IpgYhTPMpn

— The Indian Express (@IndianExpress) May 28, 2023

While being detained, Chaduni appealed to the farmers to maintain peace and not to block roads anywhere at this stage. Chaduni added, “The arrests are being made to fail today’s mahapanchayat scheduled in Delhi. As of now, we should focus on our event in Delhi. There is no need to block roads but if the farmer leaders are not released by this evening, then you may take the next call.”

To protest Chaduni’s detention, the BKU has planned a protest in front of the CIA police station in Kurukshetra on Sunday afternoon.

Farmer leaders in Hisar and khap (clan organisations) leaders in the Rohtak district have also been detained with the deployment of police there. However, some farmer leaders and activists have taken trains and buses to reach Delhi.

The farmer and khap leaders had been holding public meetings for the past several days to build support for the agitating wrestlers. The wrestlers have also visited several places in Haryana to garner more support in favour of them.

Sunday’s mahapanchayat also demanded a lie detector narco test of Singh.

The ongoing dharna by wrestlers at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar has evoked strong sentiments in Haryana, and its neighbouring areas, as most of the sportspersons of the country come from these places and belong to rural, farming families. From holding protests at the local level in Haryana, groups of khap and farmer leaders have thrown their weight behind the protests and started joining the sit-in in Delhi.

Sensing the prevailing sentiment in rural areas, former Haryana CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda and former Jammu and Kashmir governor Satya Pal Malik have already joined the protests in Delhi. Former Union minister Birender Singh and Haryana power minister Ranjit Singh Chautala have also sided with the wrestlers saying that “allegations levelled by them are serious in nature”.

Haryana Home Minister Anil Vij has expressed his willingness to mediate adding that “my support is with the wrestlers.” Vij had also said, “I will speak to the higher level of government if needed”.

However, Brij Bhushan Singh has been claiming that the wrestlers’ protest at Jantar Mantar is being driven by politicians from day one. “It is clear that these athletes are being used by Congress and other Opposition parties. It’s evident since the beginning that their motive is politics, not (my) resignation.”