Farmers Movement Archive

Farm unions, political parties protest across Punjab

In response to a call given by the joint action committee of 32 farm unions, their members staged protests at all district headquarters in Punjab on Monday. Braving the cold weather, they gathered outside district administrative complexes to protest against the Centre’s new farm laws, which they labelled pro-corporate and anti-farmer. Even political parties, including the ruling Congress besides Shiromani Akali Dal and Aam Aadmi Party, held separate protests. No untoward incident was reported at any of these protests. Congress state chief Sunil Jakhar led the party’s protest at the Shambhu border in Patiala district. Addressing a number of cabinet ministers and party MPs and MLAs, he said as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government at the Centre had agreed that the three agriculture laws had many flaws, it should scrap them immediately. Jakhar said instead of making amendments, the Union government must roll back these bills without any further delay. “The permanent solution for agrarian crisis is easy if the Centre agrees to guarantee MSP to farmers and empower states to formulate laws on agriculture,” he said. Also targeting Akalis, he said they were hand in glove with the BJP in enacting the laws, and even the AAP government had already implemented them in Delhi. Meanwhile, the district administrative complex in Patiala saw protests by farm bodies. Hundreds of farmers also held dharnas outside deputy commissioner offices in Sangrur and Barnala districts.“Our main leadership is protesting on the border of the national capital, and the second rung leadership are leading the protests here,” said Jagmohan Singh, general secretary, Bhartiya Kisan Union (Dakounda) in Patiala. In Bathinda, it was a show of strength for farm groups, particularly left-leaning Bhartiya Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan), which held separate protest outside the civil hospital and also took out a peaceful march. It was joined by a large number of women and children. Activists of other farm bodies in Bathinda protested outside the district administrative complex, where AAP MLA Baljinder Kaur also joined. AAP workers also held protests at other district headquarters. Leaders of Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) staged a protest at Golden Gate on the outskirts of Amritsar. Party chief Sukhbir Singh Badal slammed the BJP for creating a communal divide to torpedo the farmers’ stir. Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SCPC) president Bibi Jagir Kaur also took part in the protest. Even farm bodies protested at the district headquarters in Amritsar and other parts of Majha. However, Kisan Mazdoor Sangarsh Committee, which has its base in Majha, protested separately on railway tracks near Jandiala Guru, where they have been sitting since the farm laws were passed. Though the ‘rail roko’ has been lifted in the entire state, KMSC continues to block passenger trains.

Hindustan Times

15-12-2020

Chandigarh