Shaheen Bagh 'Dadi' Bilkis Bano stopped from joining farmers' protests

Bilkis Bano, popularly known as the 'Shaheen Bagh Dadi' from the anti-CAA protests in Delhi, was stopped by Delhi Police from joining the farmers protesting the new farm laws at the Singhu Delhi-Haryana border.

A team of police personnel reportedly stopped the 82-year-old activist from entering the protest site on Tuesday. She was first detained and taken to the Shaheen Bagh police station, after which she was sent home, The Wire quoted Bano's son as saying.

Gaurav Sharma, Deputy Commissioner of Police of Outer North Range, however, told the news portal that "no detention had taken place" and that police personnel had found it their duty to accompany the "senior citizen" to safety.

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"Yesterday also some persons from outside tried to come here and they were not at all welcome. In fact, there was a small incident of manhandling also. Being a senior citizen lady, and in concern of security only, she was requested to go back," Sharma said.

Bilkis Bano was included in TIME magazine's list of 100 most influential people, as well as BBC's list of 100 most inspiring and influential women of 2020.

Bano wanted to express solidarity with the farmers, and had also said that she herself was a farmer's daughter. When asked about the reason for disallowing Bilkis Dadi from partaking in the agitations, a police official told The Wire that "they should just let it be a farmers' protest".

Meanwhile, farmer leaders met union ministers Narendra Singh Tomar and Piyush Goyal at Vigyan Bhawan in Delhi. The meeting concluded without any resolution; the next session has been scheduled on December 3.

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Earlier today, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that Canada will always be there to defend the right of the people to protest peacefully, while he directly addressed the Indian community and expressed concern over the ongoing farmer protests in India.

Many farmers currently protesting at the Singhu border have endured water cannons and teargas shells, and maneuvered through barricades and barbed wires. The protestors are demanding the Centre to either initiate a repeal of the new farm laws, or introduce a new law to ensure the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for their crops.

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