Ahead of their proposed tractor parade on Republic Day, protesting farmer Unions Monday announced they will march towards Parliament from different locations on February 1 when the annual Union Budget is scheduled to be presented.
Farmers from across the states arrived at Delhi's Jantar Mantar on Monday early morning protesting over unemployment.
The 'ghar wapsi' was marked with celebratory atmosphere at Ghazipur border, where protestors, chiefly members and supporters of the Tikait family-led Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU), danced to patriotic and regional tunes hailing the farming community.
The farmers lifted blockades on highways at Singhu, Tikri and Ghazipur borders and took out a 'Victory March' to celebrate the repeal of three contentious farm laws and the Centre's written assurance to fulfil their other demands, including constituting a committee for legal guarantee on minimum support price (MSP) for crops.
Priyanka Gandhi urged people to stand with the farmers' struggle and to take the movement to the villages.
These farmers, belonging to various districts of western Uttar Pradesh, have come for the demonstration on the call of farmers' union Kisan Sena and want to go to Delhi to meet Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar, according to the outfit's conevnor Thakur Gauri Shankar Singh.
The government and the farm unions had reached some common ground on Wednesday to resolve the protesting farmers' concerns over rise in power tariff and penalties for stubble burning, but the two sides remained deadlocked over the main contentious issues of the repeal of three farm laws and a legal guarantee for MSP.
In a letter to the prime minister, the MP from Pilibhit in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh also asked him to take action against Union minister Ajay Kumar Mishra 'Teni' for the violence in Lakhmipur Kheri without taking his name.
Dhansa and Jharoda Kalan borders were closed for traffic movement due to the demonstration and commuters were asked to take an alternative route, the Delhi Traffic Police said.
'A flower garden is being created on the Delhi-Dabur Tiraha road. This will cover the dirt lying on road stretches, and also emanate fragrance and improve the environment around'
Police said farmers have been allowed to hold peaceful protest at the Nirankari Ground in north Delhi.
Bhagwant Mann and Arvind Kejriwal are realising that it is not a cakewalk to run a full state that is plagued with a fiscal deficit and where emotions run high at the drop of a hat, observes Sudhir Bisht.
Security remained tight at the Delhi borders with hundreds of personnel deployed at Singhu, Ghazipur and Tikri where the farmers have been camping.
Before bidding farewell to Singhu, some farmers performed havans and sang kirtans, and some danced to bhangra songs to mark the day as 'Vijay Diwas'.
Delhi Lt Governor Anil Baijal has given special permission for demonstration by a maximum of 200 farmers at Jantar Mantar, a few metres from the Parliament Complex, till August 9.
Farmer leaders said they were making arrangements for the women coming from different parts of Punjab. Tents are being put up, a separate langar is being planned, and extra temporary toilets are being arranged, they added.
The farmers' tractor rally - Kisaan Parade - against the farm laws was expected to be held after 12 pm. However, huge crowds gathered on the borders at around 8 am.
India's capital -- New Delhi -- is witnessing farmers from Punjab and Haryana sitting in at the Singhu and Tikri border points for the past five days, braving water cannons, tear gas and the biting cold. Their reason to protest - the Centre's new farm laws. Here's what it looks like.
The development came a day after the protesting farmers rejected the Centre's offer to start talks as soon as they move to Burari and continued to stay put Singhu and Tikri borders of the national capital.
For over three months, the three Delhi border points at Singhu, Tikri and Ghazipur have transformed into townships occupied by thousands of farmers from different parts of the country, mainly Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh.
The farmers' agitation, which has entered its fourth week, has also led to traffic diversions at various border points causing inconvenience to commuters.
'The protesters took out a march carrying black flags. They burnt Prime Minister Narendra Modi's effigy while raising slogans against the three farm laws'
The Delhi Traffic Police took to Twitter to inform commuters about alternative routes open for travelling to the neighbouring states of Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.
Internet services remained disrupted for the fifth day at the site on Delhi's outskirts where protesters are occupying a stretch of the Delhi-Meerut highway since November, even as a Ghaziabad Police officer told PTI that online connectivity has been restored but there could be glitches.
Harman Preet Singh had claimed in his petition, filed through advocates Ashima Mandla and Mandakini Singh, that Delhi Police on January 27 said that it has detained over 200 persons in connection with the violence in the national capital on January 26 and 22 FIRs have also been registered thus far.
Daulatpuria, who had joined the party ahead of 2019 assembly polls after switching over from Indian National Lok Dal, announced his decision at a Panchayat held at his village Daulatpur. Talking to reporters later, he said the three agriculture laws "are anti-farmer which should be repealed immediately".
Addressing a press conference at Singhu border, a representative of protesting farmers said that they will continue their agitation until their demands are met.
Farmers' union body the Samyukta Kisan Morcha on Tuesday disassociated itself from those who indulged in violence during the tractor parade, and alleged some "antisocial elements" infiltrated their otherwise peaceful movement.
The Indian High Commission made its displeasure known despite the British government earlier reiterating that the three New Delhi laws on agricultural reform were a "domestic matter".
According to farmer union leaders, peasants from various places including Sangrur, Amritsar, Tarn Taran, Gurdaspur and Bathinda districts were headed towards Singhu and Tikri borders.
Nineteen candidates saw an extremely close contest in the maiden District Development Council (DDC) polls in Jammu and Kashmir where the margin of victory was less than 100.
Thousands of farmers, especially from Punjab and Haryana, have been camping at various border of Delhi for almost four weeks now as formal talks between the government and representatives of farmers' unions remained deadlocked with protesting peasants refusing to accept anything less than a repeal of the newly enacted laws.
Modi also hailed the world's largest vaccination programme being carried out in India against COVID-19
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, in a tweet said the rights to peaceful assembly and expression should be protected both offline and online.
Eight Jarawa girls were rescued from two remote creeks in Andaman and Nicobar Islands after they were kidnapped by a group of men from a Jarawa Reserve Zone last week, the police said on Wednesday.
Not carrying weapons, following fixed routes and entering Delhi with tractors sans trolleys, were among the several conditions set by farmer leaders and police that were violated by participants of the tractor parade in New Delhi on Tuesday.
On National Investigation Agency's notices to some people supporting the farmers' protest, he said, "Those who want to be part of the agitation must be ready for court cases, imprisonment and sealing of property."
'Mann's decision is a welcome move. The other three members of the panel, who have shown pro-new farm laws stance should also follow Mann's suit'
Mann said he would sacrifice any position offered to him so as not to compromise the interests of farmers.
The protesting farmers, mainly from Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh, have been at the border points of the national capital for almost 40 days now, braving the bone-chilling cold weather in the region.
