Punjab: Farmers protesting at the Punjab-Haryana border will decide their next strategy today after suspending their foot march towards Delhi till Tuesday. Farmer leaders will hold a press conference at Shambhu border at 4 pm to share information about their next move. Earlier in the morning, farmers carried out a clean-up drive at a protest site that had witnessed high-voltage action on December 6 and December 8 after paramilitary forces and Haryana Police foiled their attempts to move towards Delhi. More than two dozen farmers were injured as security personnel fired tear gas shells at the protesters.
Meanwhile, Dr Sawaiman Singh, one of the faces of the 2020 farmers’ protest, has come out in support of farmer leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal, who has been on a hunger strike for the past 15 days. Sawaiman, who works as a cardiologist in the US, has sought support from the strong NRI community for the ongoing farmers’ protest. During a meeting of Kisan Mazdoor Morcha and Samyukta Kisan Morcha (non-political) at Shambhu border, it was decided not to send any batch of farmers till Tuesday. The protesters have been camping at Shambhu and Khanauri border points between Punjab and Haryana since February 13 after security forces stopped their march towards Delhi. The farmers are demanding minimum support price for crops, farm loan waiver, pension for farmers and farm labourers, no hike in power tariff, withdrawal of police cases (against farmers) and legal guarantee of “justice” for the victims of 2021 Lakhimpur Kheri violence.
