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Amritsar: Farmers withdraw protest plan after release of Pandher, others
They were arrested on Saturday night before chief minister Bhagwant Mann’s Sunday rally in Majitha as the farmer leaders had announced that they would quiz the CM on the government’s “failure” in delivering promises
Sarwan Singh Pandher and other farmer leaders of the organisations working under the banner of the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (KMM) were released by the Punjab Punjab on Tuesday following which the farmers’ withdrew their plan to protest outside the SSP offices in Amritsar and Sangrur.
They were arrested on Saturday night before chief minister Bhagwant Mann’s Sunday rally in Majitha as the farmer leaders had announced that they would quiz the CM on the government’s “failure” in delivering promises. A few were caught after they broke police barricades and reached close to the rally venue.
The process to release the detained farmers had begun on late Monday evening after a meeting of DIG (border range) Sandeep Goyal and SSP Rural Sohail Mir Qasim with representatives of the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee (KMSC) and the KMM.
The leaders detained in Gurdaspur, Tarn Taran and Sangrur were released by 11 pm on Monday. However, the government delayed the release of Pandher, along with Gurdev Singh Gaggo Mahal and Prabhjot Singh Gujjarpura. “Despite an assurance from the police that they would be released by 8 am, the promise was not kept,” said a spokesperson of the KMSC. “In response, farmers, labourers and women began marching from villages towards the SSP offices in Sangrur and Amritsar. At that moment, the administration announced that Pandher and his associates had been released,” the spokesperson stated.
After that, gatherings outside the SSP offices in Amritsar and Sangrur held victory marches. Addressing the gathering after his release, Pandher said, “The struggle will continue until democratic rights are fully restored. The state and the central governments are answerable to the people.”
Pandher appealed to the people to implement the Morcha’s call regarding removal of prepaid electricity meters and depositing them at the power offices on a large scale on January 21 and 22.
