Over 200 farmers booked in Ambala

Tribune News Service

Ambala, June 22

A day after farmers had blocked a road, forcing Education Minister Kanwar Pal Gujjar to skip a scheduled meeting in the city, the district police today booked more than 200 farmers.

The minister was to chair a meeting on Monday at Panchayat Bhawan on the Ambala-Hisar national highway, which the farmers had blocked for a few hours.

The farmers had gathered for their protest when Gujjar was scheduled to reach the venue to chair the district grievance committee’s meeting. The minister skipped it following the demonstration by farmers.

A case has been registered under Sections 147, 149, 186, 188, 269, 270 332, 353, and 506 of the IPC and Section 51 of the Disaster Management Act at the Ambala City police station.

More than 200 unnamed protesters have been booked on charges of holding unlawful assembly, committing riots and assaultinga public servant and obstructing them in the discharge of their duty on a complaint of the Sector 9 police station SHO Suresh Kumar.

In his complaint, the SHO said around 200-250 farmers broke the barricades, and manhandled and assaulted him due to which he suffered an injury in his right hand’s thumb, the police have said.

The SHO also said some of the farmers threatened him with dire consequences if he did not allow them to reach Panchayat Bhavan.