Protesters brave lathis, water cannons

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 8

High drama was witnessed when the police resorted to a lathicharge to quell protesters who tried to lock the local BJP office in Sector 33 here today.

Protesting against the new farm laws, members of various youth organisations clashed with the police when they were stopped from marching towards the BJP office. The police used water cannons and resorted to a lathicharge to disperse the protesters, who tried to break the police barricades. Some protesters also tried to damage a water cannon vehicle. Several protesters received minor injuries when the police used force to disperse them.

However, the police didn’t let us move ahead and they lathicharged the protesters. The police didn’t even spare women and children, who were left injured,” Sidhu added.

Ravinder Singh, a resident of Kharar, said cops hit him on the head with sticks. “This is the award given to me by the government for honestly and peacefully asking for the laws to be revoked,” he said.

Manjeet Kaur, aged above 60, said, “I was hit on my shoulder and my hip. First, they used water cannons and then sticks. My father was a war veteran and a farmer too. I am here to ask for revocation of the draconian farm laws.” Manjeet is the president of Samuhik Stri Satsang.

Deputy Superintendent of Police Charanjit Singh Virk, a spokesperson for the UT police, said around 600 protesters, including members of the Yuva Kisan Ekta, had gathered near the gurdwara in Sector 34 and wanted to lay a siege to the BJP office in Sector 33, following which they were stopped. “During the protest, some members of the Yuva Kisan Ekta tried to cross the barricades following which the police resorted to the use of force and water cannons,” he said.

The DSP said the crowd also pelted cops with stones and broke the barricades, due to which eight police personnel, including the SHO of the Sector 34 police station, were injured. He said a case under Sections 186, 147, 148, 149, 332, 353 and 188 of the IPC and Section 3 of the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act had been registered against the protesters.

When contacted on WhatsApp, SP City Vineet Kumar replied: “We tried to stop the protesters because they had no permission and were violating Covid norms. An FIR has been registered. We used minimum force to disperse the unlawful assembly.”

Cong blocks highway

• Local Congress workers and leaders blocked the national highway at the Hallo Majra light point for almost three hours.
• City Congress president Pardeep Chhabra, who was leading the protesters, said the amount of support that the farmers were getting would make the ‘arrogant’ BJP government take notice of their demand.
• Traffic kept moving on the slip road between the Poultry Farm rotary and the Hallo Majra light point.

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• Shops open in BJP wards

Some shops in the wards represented by Congress councillors were closed for some time. The Leader of the Opposition in the MC House, Devinder Singh Babla, along with other Congress leaders, took a round of these markets in the morning. Congress councillor Gurbax Rawat said in her ward in Sector 40, shops were closed for some time, but started opening later. Residents even held a protest in the market.

In BJP wards, almost all shops were open. BJP councillor Shakti Prakash Devshali claimed that the bandh call had no effect in the city. Those shops, which were got closed by Congress councillors, opened after some time.

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