Punjab cites intel on potential violence for action on farmers

Justifying its March 19 action against farmers, the Punjab Government today informed the Punjab and Haryana High Court that intelligence inputs had indicated a potential escalation at the farm protest sites in Shambhu and Khanauri.

It said there were credible warnings suggesting that the protesting farmers might attempt to breach barricades and resume their march towards Delhi.

An affidavit, submitted by Patiala Senior Superintendent of Police Nanak Singh, stated that intelligence gathered from various sources pointed that the “farmers were likely to make a violent attempt at breaching the barricading”.

The situation reportedly worsened after a meeting held on March 19 between leaders of protesting farmer organisations and a central ministerial delegation led by the Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. Farmer leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal, who is on an indefinite fast, too had attended the meeting while being medically monitored in an ambulance provided by the Punjab Government in compliance with the SC’s directions.

The affidavit said the Punjab Government took pre-emptive steps on the intervening night of March 19-20 while acting on the “critical and alarming inputs suggesting likelihood of breach of peace at the protest sites”.

The Punjab Police and local administration worked to disperse the protesting farmers from Shambhu and Khanauri without resorting to “strong force whatsoever”. The action was necessary to prevent the breach of peace and to ease hardships faced by the public due to prolonged roadblocks, it said.

The affidavit said the decision to clear the protest sites was in line with the Supreme Court’s directives, which had encouraged the state authorities to manage the situation.

“Various orders passed by the Supreme Court would reveal that not only were Punjab and Haryana expected to remedy the on-ground situation and to bring an end to the impasse, they were, in fact, encouraged to continue doing so and… appreciated for the same at certain instances of the proceedings,” the affidavit said.

The affidavit was submitted in response to a habeas corpus petition for Dallewal’s release. Petitioner-farmer leader Gurmukh Singh, through counsel Gurmohan Preet Singh, Angrej Singh and Kanwarjit Singh, had contended that Dallewal was allegedly put in illegal custody by the respondents.