Farmers welcome high court order, to resume ‘Delhi Chalo’ march
PATIALA: Welcoming the Punjab and Haryana high court’s direction to Haryana Police to lift the barricade at Shambhu on the Ambala-Patiala border, farmer union leaders said the ruling debunked the narrative created by the BJP that farmers had been blocking the national highway.
Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee (KMSC) president Sarwan Singh Pandher, said, “The court has made it clear that it was the Haryana government that had blocked the national highway and caused inconvenience to lakhs of people and not us. We will meet on July 16 to discuss the future strategy after the Haryana government removes barricades.”
Members of the Punjab farmer unions, who have been sitting at the Shambhu and Khanauri borders with Haryana, since February 13 announced that they will now continue with their march to Delhi to press for their demands, including the legal guarantee of the minimum support price (MSP) for all crops.
Guramneet Singh Mangat, the convener of the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (KMM), said, “It (the high court decision) is a positive step.”
The Haryana Police had barricaded the inter-state border at Shambhu and Khanauri to deter protesting farmers from reaching the national capital.
Ramandeep Singh Mann, a member of the KMM, said, “We had never called off our Delhi Chalo call. We will ask the authorities concerned to designate a venue in Delhi to allow us to protest peacefully.”
Punjab health minister Dr Balbir Singh, taking a jibe at the BJP government in Haryana said, “Government blocked the highway, not farmers. Now the barricades should be immediately removed.” Applauding the court’s order, the leader of the Opposition, Partap Singh Bajwa said the BJP government in Haryana was violating the basic tenets of democracy.
“Action should be taken
against the Haryana government for illegally barricading the highway for five months,” he said.
Won’t support agitation, says Charuni
KARNAL: Welcoming the high court’s order, Haryana’s senior farmer leader Gurnam Singh Charuni, who was in Karnal for an event, said he would not support the agitation if the protesting farmers resume their march towards Delhi.
The Bhartiya Kisan Union (Charuni) president said the protest and blockade of roads permanently were wrong, but barricades were put in by the government.
“They should immediately open the barricades and if the farmers march towards Delhi, police can arrest them or take any other legal action. Above all, there should be a dialogue to resolve the impasse,” he added.