BKU(U) activists protest land acquisition at Saraud village

Malerkotla, August 28

Hundreds of activists of the Bhartiya Kisan Union (Ugrahan) sparred against equally strong police force across barricades put up to stop them from reaching a piece of land near Saraud village, which was going to be acquired by the administration for construction of the Delhi-Katra expressway of the National Highway Authority of India.

A large number of protesters had reached the spot to organise dharna as there were claims and counterclaims about the status of acquisition of land in question. While the administration claimed that the possession taken once can’t be reversed, the protesters declared that today’s action was to stop the government from taking possession of the land forcibly.

Senior functionaries led by DIG Narinder Bhargava and DC Pallavi were still holding meetings with farmer leaders at the time of filing the story. As the cops were advised not to use force against protesting farmers, the farm activists left no stone unturned to dislodge the barricades and push the cops behind to reach the site for declaring repossession of land to original owners of the land. Minor scuffles among activists and cops were reported, but nobody was injured during the day.

All efforts of the administration, led by DC Pallavi and SSP Gagan Ajit Singh, to persuade protesters to shun agitation proved futile. While the administration offered to expedite redressal of all individual issues by the special committee constituted for the purpose, BKU (U) activists insisted they would not allow the government till the Chief Minister fulfills the promise to get the compensation amount transferred to accounts of actual owners of the land.

The Delhi-Amritsar-Katra expressway under Bharat Mala megaproject was among other projects discussed by the Prime Minister at the PRAGATI meeting today and the administration has deployed extra force to stop farm activists from reaching the Saraud village with intent to reverse the acquisition of land made by the administration earlier.