Farm union gets nod for Bathinda protest rally

Uncertainty over a protest planned by the Bharti Kisan Union (Ekta-Ugrahan) in Bathinda ended after a meeting between the police, district administration and union leaders.

Following the meeting with DIG Harjeet Singh, SSP Jyoti Yadav and Deputy Commissioner Rajesh Dhiman, union president Joginder Singh Ugrahan and vice-president Jhanda Singh Jethuke said the police and the administration had allowed them to hold a rally at the PUDA ground along the power house road.

Nearly 50 unions have extended support to the farmer organisation. The protest has been called against the alleged police excesses on farmers in Bathinda district on February 6 and 18.

The farmers are demanding action against officials responsible for the alleged incidents, compensation for the injured and withdrawal of cases registered against activists during protests.

Ugrahan said, “Had the policy of resolving issues through dialogue been adopted earlier, the situation would not have escalated to this extent.”

Earlier, BKU (Ekta-Ugrahan) activists had announced protests outside the Bathinda District Administrative Complex on February 6 and 18. Violent clashes occurred between farmers and the police on both occasions.

In the first incident, five FIRs were registered against more than 2,000 unidentified farmers. In the second incident, nearly 400 unidentified farmers were booked in an attempt-to-murder case, and two farmers sustained serious injuries.