On Sunday, the Farmers unions suspended the ‘Delhi Chalo’ march for the day after eight protesting farmers were injured in tear gas shelling by the Haryana Police.
Punjab farmer activist Sarwan Singh Pandher reported that eight farmers were hurt, with one of them being taken to the Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) in Chandigarh.
Pandher was cited by PTI as saying, “We have called back the ‘jatha’ (group of 101 farmers).”
After a meeting of their forums, the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha and the Samyuka Kisan Morcha (Non-Political), he added, the farmers would determine their next move.
Earlier this afternoon, the ‘jatha’ started its foot march from the farmers’ protest site in Shambhu, but was quickly stopped by the multi-layered barricading that Haryana police forces had put up.
Tear gas shelling, water cannons on protesters
Tear gas shells were lobbed at the protesting farmers and water jets were used as well to disperse them after they reached the barricades.
Earlier, the Ambala police had stated that the farmers’ groups could only march to Delhi with the national capital administration’s approval.
The group, known as “marjeevras” (someone prepared to die for a cause), was stopped just a few meters away from where they were marching for a legal guarantee for the Minimum Support Price.
A farmer told PTI, “They are saying that our names were not on the list. We do not know which list they have. When we asked them whether they would allow us to move ahead after verifying our identities, they told us then we would have to show the permission.”
Farmer leader Tejveer Singh asked why farmers were stopped from moving ahead when they were peacefully going on foot. “What objection does Haryana have?”
On Friday too, farmers had to suspend their march after some of them suffered injuries due to tear gas shells.
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