Punjab: Efforts on to bring protesting farmers to negotiating table again

Tribune News Service

Ruchika M Khanna

Chandigarh, February 21

The violence at two protest sites on the Punjab’s borders with Haryana, wherein a youth has died and several have been injured, has sent alarm bells ringing in the state’s corridors of power. With no one sure of the course this agitation will take, government emissaries have desperately continued to try to convince farm leaders to come on board for the next round of talks with the Centre.

According to information available with The Tribune, the Centre reportedly initiated a dialogue with the Punjab Government last night, asking it to convince and bring the farmer leaders back on the discussion table and not to go ahead with the protest march today. The services of a former-cop-turned politician, having good relations with the farmer leaders, was also roped in by the Centre for the purpose.

Won’t tolerate repression

We will not tolerate the repression of farmers. We will continue to hold protests and will be with the SKM on the next course of action. —Joginder Singh Ugrahan, Head BKU (Ekta-Ugrahan)

After the Centre raised the issue of deteriorating law and order situation in the state, the state government, through Chief Secretary Anurag Verma, categorically denied this and shot off a letter to the Centre, saying that while the assembly of farmers in the state was peaceful, the farmers had gathered at Shambhu and Dhabi Gujran, as they were not allowed to move forward by the Haryana Police.

“The Haryana Police used tear gas shells, rubber bullets and drones leading to 160 persons being injured till date,” he has said in the letter.

While claiming that the CM had been facilitating the dialogue between the two sides, he also reminded the Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs, that being a border state, it has sensitive law and order issues and these cannot be ignored while handling a protest of such magnitude.

This afternoon, a team of senior police officers, who have been camping at Shambhu border, held meetings with the farmer leaders. Though initially, when the “Dilli Chalo” march started in the morning, the leaders reportedly avoided holding talks with the government emissaries. It was only after the offer for talks by Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Arjun Munda made a public offer for talks with the farmers that they initiated a dialogue with the police officers. However, the death of a farmer, injuries sustained by many others in the police action against them, led them to ultimately postpone the march for two days, though they said they would continue to sit-in at the borders of the state.

There are indications of other farmer unions coming out in support of the unions.

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