Hundreds of farmers and workers headed to Delhi to join a protest called by the Cockroach Janta Party were restricted at Chapargarh village and the Yamuna Expressway toll plaza by police, leading to skirmishes and heated exchanges on Saturday.
According to the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU), hundreds of BKU-affiliated farmers set out in tractors and trolleys following a protest call by the union’s national spokesperson, Rakesh Tikait. The farmers were stopped at Chapargarh village and the Yamuna Expressway toll plaza using barricades.
The confrontation reportedly involved heated exchanges and pushing and shoving between the farmers and police personnel. The farmers subsequently staged a sit-in at the toll plaza and raised slogans.
Deep Dive
Why were farmers travelling to Delhi during the CJP protest?
Where were farmers stopped on their way to the CJP protest?
What did the farmers and BKU do after police blocked their march?
Pawan Khatana, BKU national general secretary and state spokesperson, said: “Stopping farmers from going to Delhi is the murder of democracy. The government should have listened to them instead of stopping them.”
{{/usCountry}}Pawan Khatana, BKU national general secretary and state spokesperson, said: “Stopping farmers from going to Delhi is the murder of democracy. The government should have listened to them instead of stopping them.”
{{/usCountry}}The union stated that its protest at the toll plaza would continue in opposition to the police action and its future course of action will be decided based on Tikait’s directions.
In a separate development, members of the Kisan Sabha and Kisan Ekta Sangh staged a demonstration outside a Greater Noida high-rise, demanding the release of detained farmer leaders and activists and the resignation of CEC Gyanesh Kumar.