Punjab, Haryana to hold 2nd meeting with farmers to lift Shambhu blockade

The first meeting held on August 21 remained inconclusive with farmers sticking to their stand to march to Delhi, while the Haryana government insisting that farmers can proceed to the national capital sans their tractors and trolleys.

Punjab and Haryana officials are all set to host the second round of meetings with farmers in Patiala on Sunday after the Supreme Court’s directions to persuade the agitators to lift the six-month-old blockade at the Shambhu border.

Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee General Secretary Sarwan Singh Pandher speaks to the media after their meeting to reopen the Shambhu border in Patiala on August 21. (ANI File)

The meeting has been called by the Punjab special director general of police (law and order) Punjab.

This will be the second meeting between the farmers and the Punjab and Haryana officials. The first meeting held on August 21 remained inconclusive with farmers sticking to their stand to march to Delhi, while the Haryana government insisting that farmers can proceed to the national capital sans their tractors and trolleys.

The Supreme Court on August 22 told Punjab and Haryana to assure agitating farmers to clear the highway along the Shambhu border and deferred the decision on forming the expert committee to resolve the concerns of farmers over minimum support prices and other issues till September 2.

The bench, headed by justice Surya Kant, also permitted the two states to suggest the proposed terms of reference for the expert committee to comprise independent persons who are related to the field of agriculture. The bench, which also comprised justices Dipankar Datta and Ujjal Bhuyan, said, “On the composition of the committee and the issues to be resolved by them, we have done our homework. We will do that. But we request both states to assure the farmers that since now the court is considering having a forum for them to reach out with their grievances, the issue can be resolved only as per law.”

Punjab’s advocate general Gurminder Singh informed the court that state officials held a meeting early this week with farmer unions and explored the possibility of clearing the Ambala-New Delhi national highway for partial movement of traffic, as suggested by the top court on August 12. “The farmers have no issues with the opening of the highway. But they are firm on their resolve to agitate,” he said, adding that the state was open to permitting them to proceed on vehicles which are permissible as per the Motor Vehicles Act.

Haryana’s additional advocate general Lokesh Singhal pointed out that the farmers were still insisting on travelling on tractors to march to Parliament.

A senior official from the Punjab government, who did not wish to be named, said that the farmers were offered a choice: either relocate their protest to a designated protest site or open one lane of the national highway. The farmers requested some time to consider this proposal.

Ahead of the Sunday meeting, the farm leaders said the Haryana government has no intention of opening the highway.

Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (KMM) convener Sarwan Singh Pandher criticised the Haryana government and said: “First, the Haryana government ignored the Punjab and Haryana high court order to open the national highway. Now, they are dragging their feet even after the Supreme Court’s directive. We demand the immediate opening of the highway. It’s the Haryana government that is opposing the order.”

Pandher further claimed that the Haryana government is attempting to trap the farmers in prolonged negotiations to delay the opening of the border.

“We won’t fall into the trap. While we will attend tomorrow’s meeting, we are certain that the Haryana government has no intention of opening the highway,” Pandher asserted.

The Supreme Court’s August 22 order came while hearing an appeal filed by the Haryana government against an order of the Punjab & Haryana high court in July directing it to remove the barricades and allow traffic movement along the Shambhu border. The high court direction came on a petition filed by a local resident Uday Pratap Singh as the closure of the arterial road posed a grave situation to persons staying in the immediate locality who frequented Ambala for medical treatment and other purposes.

The top court stayed the high court’s direction, and on August 12, favoured the partial opening of the highway for ambulances, essential services, local residents and girl students required to travel interstate for jobs, education, etc. The police chiefs of both states were directed to convene a meeting and work out modalities for the same.

Last month, the court favoured the formation of an expert panel to mediate with the farmers as it noted a “trust deficit” between farmers and governments on both sides.

The Haryana government had barricaded the highway in February after the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha announced a march to Delhi to support various demands, including a legal guarantee of MSP for crops. As farmers were stopped from crossing over to Haryana for their onward journey to Delhi, clashes took place between the farmers and Haryana police in which Shubh Karan Singh, a protester from Bathinda, was killed at Khanauri on the Punjab-Haryana border.