To Shambhu or not? Rohtak farmers to decide this week

Rohtak, June 4

After the Lok Sabha polls, Punjab farmers have started moving to the Shambhu border to strengthen the ongoing farm agitation there, but the local farmers, who staged a dharna at Titoli village here for around a month early this year in support of their counterparts in Punjab, are yet to take a call in this respect.

They will decide their next course of action after a meeting with protesting Punjab growers staying put at the Shambhu border. The meeting is likely to take place there on Wednesday.

“We have informally discussed the ongoing agitation of Punjab farmers at the Shambhu border. Everyone is in favour of providing the protesting farmers all help to strengthen the agitation, hence we have planned to visit Shambhu border to meet them on June 5 before taking further call in this regard,” said Monika Nain, a BKU leader.She said a seven-member committee was formed in February to carry out the agitation at Titoli. “All these members will now discuss the next course of action with the protesting farmers at the Shambhu border and then convene a meeting in Rohtak regarding the resumption of the dharna at Titoli. Till today, the farm and khap leaders were waiting for the results of the Lok Sabha polls to move forward accordingly,” Monika added.

Notably, the local farmers had launched indefinite dharna at Titoli village in February in support of their Punjab counterparts. They also mobilised the support of the khap panchayats to strengthen the dharna. Even people of the nearby villages had also joined in. In March, when the Lok Sabha elections were declared, the dharna was put off till the installation of a new government at the Centre.

The farm activists also questioned BJP candidate Dr Arvind Sharma about the stand of his party’s government towards their demands when he visited the villages to seek votes from people for the Lok Sabha polls.