Farmer protest: Police halts 'Delhi Chalo' march, tear gas fired; borders turn fortresses. Watch

A group of 101 farmers resumed their foot march to Delhi shortly after 12 noon on Sunday from the Shambhu protest site on the Punjab-Haryana border to press the Centre for various demands, including a legal guarantee for Minimum Support Price (MSP).

However, after walking for a few metres, they were stopped at the barricading by Haryana Police. Haryana Police asked the farmers to show them the requisite permission to take out the foot march.

Police had earlier asked the farmers not to proceed further and cited a prohibitory order clamped by the Ambala administration under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) that bans unlawful assembly of five or more people in the district.

Protesting farmers had on December 6 suspended their march to the national capital for the day after some of them suffered injuries due to tear gas shells fired by security personnel, who stopped them at the Punjab-Haryana border.

In response to security concerns, Delhi police have set up barricades and placed nails at the Shambhu Border. "Delhi Police is on alert and security has been tightened at the Singhu border. A skeletal deployment has been made at the Singhu border but it may increase as per the situation at the Shambu border," a senior police officer told PTI.

Traffic may also be hit due to the security arrangements at the border and in the central part of Delhi, he said. A strict vigil is also being maintained at the Noida border as another group of farmers from Uttar Pradesh has been protesting there, he added. The officer said police are ready to tackle any situation.

The protesting farmers earlier attempted to march towards Delhi on February 13 and February 21 but were stopped by security forces.

Farmer representative Sarwan Singh Pandher condemned the “brutality” faced by farmers at the Shambhu border and emphasised that no laws had been violated. 

“Why are farmers being treated so harshly?… Considering the situation, a group of 101 will depart for Delhi tomorrow at noon. Our hunger strike has now entered its 12th day. We will proceed peacefully and ensure that no regulations are broken,” he told ANI. 

Pandher also pointed out that the protests by Kisan Mazdoor Morcha and Samyukta Kisan Morcha have reached their 300th day, yet the central government remains unresponsive. 

“The protests by Kisan Mazdoor Morcha and Samyukta Kisan Morcha (non-political) have reached their 300th day. However, the central government remains stubborn… We have also announced that we will oppose the entry of BJP leaders into Punjab. Although we're not certain, we’ve heard that Haryana CM Nayab Singh Saini and Union Minister Nitin Gadkari are planning to visit Amritsar. We urge farmers in Punjab to oppose their entry into the state,” he added. 

In Tamil Nadu, Ayyakannu, a member of the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) and the United Farmers Front, expressed frustration over the lack of action by the central government. Despite thousands of farmers protesting last year in Delhi for a minimum support price (MSP) and loan rights, no progress has been made. He emphasised that MSP is vital for farmers. 

Ayyakannu also pointed out that the recommendations of the MS Swaminathan report for farmers’ welfare were ignored during the Congress regime, and the same issue continues under the BJP government. “MS Swaminathan submitted a report during the Congress period, recommending that farmers be given a price 50 percent above the cost of production. However, the Congress government failed to implement this recommendation,” he said. 

Besides MSP, the farmers are demanding a farm debt waiver, pension for farmers and farm labourers, no hike in electricity tariff, withdrawal of police cases (against farmers), and "justice" for the victims of the 2021 Lakhimpur Kheri violence.

Reinstatement of the Land Acquisition Act, 2013 and compensation to the families of farmers who died during the previous agitation in 2020-21 are also among their demands.