Farmers from Punjab, who announced that they will march towards Delhi to demand a discussion on Minimum Support Price (MSP), on Monday broke police barriers near the Dalit Prerna Sthal in Noida and began moving towards Delhi.
However, after holding talks with cops, the farmers left the protest site. Following this, police removed the barricades and saw the traffic movement's return to normalcy.
Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader Pawan Khatana told reporters about the farmers' demand on compensation and the Land Acquisition Act.
"In 2013, the farmers of Gautam Buddha Nagar fought for the Land Acquisition Act and got it passed, but it has not been implemented. No farmer has received four times the compensation. There has been no increase in the circle rate," he added.
Noting that farmers are being displaced because of the airport, Khatana said that they will continue their protest till there is no change in the displacement policy.
"We will continue moving forward till the time we reach where we are supposed to... We haven't blocked the road. The administration did it. We were marching forward as per our plan. They blocked the road, this is why we have stopped temporarily," the BKU leader said.
Joint CP Law and Order Noida, Shivhari Meena, told ANI, "The farmers had announced the 'Delhi Challo' march today and we were continuously holding talks with them. The farmers have told their demands to the officials and officials have given them an assurance. The traffic has returned to normalcy."
{{/usCountry}}Joint CP Law and Order Noida, Shivhari Meena, told ANI, "The farmers had announced the 'Delhi Challo' march today and we were continuously holding talks with them. The farmers have told their demands to the officials and officials have given them an assurance. The traffic has returned to normalcy."
{{/usCountry}}With the first group of farmers, led by the Bharatiya Kisan Parishad, kickstarting their march on Monday, police had put up barricades and issued advisory for commuters travelling from Noida to Delhi.
Protesters were to begin their march from the Maha Maya flyover in Noida at noon.
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Sagar Singh Kalsi, Additional Commissioner of Police, Eastern Range of Delhi Police, had told PTI that owing to farmers' protest, they have made strong and robust arrangements at all major, minor borders in East Delhi.
"We have done barricading, have anti-riot equipment. There is an elaborate arrangement, we are also ensuring that common people won't get affected, we are also coordinating with traffic police. We are drone surveillance," Kalsi added.
Meanwhile, photos from the scene where farmers broke the police barricades show the scale of protest undertaken by them.
Additionally, Joint CP Sanjay Kumar had said that Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita has been imposed in the national capital owing to the ongoing Parliament session.
“The Mahamaya flyover, be it the district border, DND or Kalindi, extra deployment of personnel has been done to ensure that the crowd cannot enter without permission. CAPF, local police, barricading have been done at the borders...Surveillance is also being done through drones,” Kumar added.
Notably, this move from the farmers comes just hours after the Supreme Court asked the Punjab farmer leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal to persuade the protesting farmers not to obstruct highways and cause inconvenience to people.
Dallewal is on a fast-unto death at the Khanauri border point to press the government for the acceptance of the farmers' demands.
While dismissing a habeas corpus plea filed on behalf of Dallewal, a top court bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan also noted that the issue raised by the farmers has been noted by the court and is considered in a pending matter.
"In a democratic setup, you can engage in peaceful protests but do not cause inconvenience to people. You all know that the Khanauri border is a lifeline for Punjab. We are not commenting on whether the protest is right or wrong," the bench told advocate Guninder Kaur Gill, appearing for the Punjab farmer leader.
Under Samyukta Kisan Morcha (non-political) and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (KMM) banners, farmers have been protesting at the Shambhu and Khanauri border points between Punjab and Haryana since February 13, after their march to the national capital was blocked by security forces.
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The protesting farmers accused the Centre of not taking steps to address their demands, claiming that it has not held any talks with them since February 18.
Other than a legal guarantee for MSP, the farmers are also seeking the implementation of the recommendations given by the Swaminathan Commission, pension for farmers and farm labourers, farm debt waiver, reinstatement of the Land Acquisition Act, 2013, and compensation to the families of farmers who died during the previous 2020-21 agitation.