Farmers block roads in Amritsar, against cane-charge in Haryana

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, August 29

Activists of the Bharatiya Kisan Union (Ugrahan) on Saturday blocked vehicular traffic on the elevated road and the Bhandari railway overbridge (ROB) in the city to protest against cane charging of protesting farmers in Haryana.

They squatted on the ROB and burnt effigies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar. Holding flags of the BKU, they raised slogans against Khattar for using power against the peaceful protesting farmers. The sit-in, which commenced at 10 am, concluded at 2.30 pm. They also raised slogans of unity between farmers of Punjab and Haryana.

Karnail Singh Nangali, a farmer leader, said the farmers of two neighbouring states had been staging a peaceful protest for the past over nine months. However, the government was resorting to violent measures to suppress the movement.

However, blocking of the two vital roads passing through the city caused traffic chaos. It resulted in traffic jam and commuters were greatly inconvenienced. A large proportion among the commuters was of young candidates who were heading to attempt written tests for recruitment in cooperative bank and in jail as warden. The examination centres for these jobs were opened at various government schools. They were harassed while on the way to their examination centres.

Jatinder Singh, a resident of the GT Road, said his examination centre was at Government Senior Secondary School, Bhaiyan Da Shivala. “Though being a local on the way I had to face traffic jams and bottlenecks. I hardly managed to reach the centre.” He claimed that many candidates, especially those coming from remote areas and villages, did not make it to the centre or reached quite late.

Being a weekend, the proportion of local people was less in traffic, but the number of floating population like tourists and candidates was highest. They found it extremely tough to move from one part to another in the city.

Burn effigies of khattar Government in Tarn Taran

Tarn Taran: Farmers and labourers organised protests at different places in the area on Sunday against the brutal cane-charging by the Haryana Police on agitating farmers. The protesting farmers blocked roads, staged dharnas and burnt the effigies of the Union and the Khattar governments. The workers of the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committees, Punjab, staged dharnas on the National Highway 54 near Rasulpur, Thathia Mahantan, Shakri, Doburji and at the crossing of Chabal village. The agitated farmers blocked traffic for hours together. Harpreet Singh Sidhwan, Dhanna Singh Lalughuman were among others who addressed on the occasion. The leaders alleged that the Union and the BJP-led state governments were adopting all types of tactics to defame and destabilise the farmers’ agitation, which was going on with great enthusiasm at the Delhi borders even after nine months. The members of the Bharti Kisan Union (Rajewal), Jamhoori Kisan Sabha and other organisations, too, lodged their protest in different villages of the district and burnt effigies of the Union and the Haryana governments. OC

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