E-Paper
Farmers protest outside residences of AAP ministers, MLAs against police crackdown
The call for the protest was given by the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha.
Farmers on Monday staged protests outside the residences of the AAP ministers and MLAs across the state against police crackdown in which protesters were evicted from the Shambhu and Khanauri border points.
The call for the protest was given by the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha.
They condemned the March 19 Punjab Police action in which several farmers leaders were detained as they were returning after a meeting with a central delegation in Chandigarh.
Thousands of protesters gathered outside Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Singh Mann’s residence in Sangrur on Monday. The protest led by Kulvinder Singh Soni Longowal, district president of the Bharati Kisan Union (Ekta Azad), was part of a call given by both the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha and the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (non-political) forums.
Farmer leaders lashed out at the state government, accusing it of evicting their protests at the Shambhu and Khanauri border points “in cahoots with the BJP-led Centre”. They also demand compensation for the theft of tractor-trailers, and other belongings from the protest sites following the dismantling of temporary structures by police.
Several farmers, who were part of the Shambhu and Khanauri protests, have claimed that their belongings including trolleys were missing, adding that they might have been stolen.
They also called for the removal of MLA Gurlal Ghanour, accusing him of orchestrating the “looting” of the protest sites.
In Bathinda, activists of various farm unions gathered outside the houses of leaders, including speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan (Kotkapura), Baljinder Kaur (Talwandi Sabo) and Fauja Singh Sarari (Guru Harsahai), and staged a protest.
State general secretary of the BKU (Ekta Sidhupur) Kaka Singh Kotra said the agrarian community has resentment against the Mann government for forcefully removing the farmers. In Jalandhar, farmers held protests outside the residence of cabinet minister Mohinder Bhagat.
Police had tightened security to restrict the movement of the protesters towards the minister’s house. In Amritsar, farmers staged protests outside the residence of cabinet minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal at Jagdev Kalan village and outside the office of minister Harbhajan Singh ETO at Jandiala Guru.
KMM coordinator Sarwan Singh Pandher said the Punjab and central government should compensate all the financial losses caused to the farmers due to the action by the state on March 19. He said the Punjab government should take action against MLA Devinderjit Singh for “misbehaving” with the farmers in Moga.
With PTI inputs
--With PTI inputs
