Former Punjab CM criticises government for detaining protesting farmers at Shambhu border
New Delhi: Charanjit Singh Channi, the former chief minister of Punjab, said that the state was going through “tragic times” and criticized the government for holding protesting farmers at the Shambhu border.
He protested that the agricultural community was “under attack” as part of a “conspiracy” after Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann met with Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Punjab is experiencing dreadful circumstances, hence “Aaj Punjab ke upar ek badi vipda ka din hai.” Farmers are being assaulted as part of a plot, and our CM met with Union Home Minister Amit Shah. The whole farmer community is being attacked today, not only in Punjab,” the Congress MP told the media report.
The government was having negotiations with farmers, but Channi stated the farmers were being “deceived, maligned and were (being) attacked from behind” in reference to their meeting with the center. Farmers, he said, were not obstructing highways. Rather, they were being prevented from getting to Delhi.
“The next round of negotiations was scheduled for May 4 after a conference was convened (in Chandigarh), but the farmers were ambushed from behind. They are being misrepresented and mislead. The government, not the farmers, has blocked the route. “They (farmers) are interested in visiting Delhi,” Channi said.
The Bhagwant Mann administration in Punjab was criticized earlier by former Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) head Sukhbir Singh Badal for the “arrest” of farmers who were demonstrating at the Shambhu border. The farmers were adamant about a number of requests, including a legal guarantee of the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for all crops.
Badal demanded their release, accusing the Punjabi government of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) of disregarding the farmers’ requests in spite of the promise of MSP on crops.
“The Bhagwant Mann administration is not even prepared to hear the farmers’ justifiable requests today, despite having pledged to provide MSP to Punjabi farmers in five minutes. Badal, the former Deputy Chief Minister of Punjab, said on his Facebook page, “I vehemently condemn the forcible abduction of farmer leaders and farmers.”
“The Punjab government should immediately release the arrested farmers and accept their demands,” he said.
Police arrested a number of farmer leaders, including Sarvan Singh Pandher, the head of the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha, and Jagjit Singh Dallewal, who is still on an indefinite fast.
The Punjab government’s conduct was denounced by farmer leader and Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) national spokesman Rakesh Tikait, who said, “On one hand, the government is negotiating with the farmer organizations and on the other hand, it is arresting them.”
As farmers demonstrated and pressed for their varied demands, a tense situation developed at the Shambhu Border. Police apprehended a number of farmer leaders near the Punjab-Haryana border on Tuesday.
To further limit the farmers’ mobility, the Haryana Police deployed bulldozers to tear down concrete barriers that had been put up at the Shambhu Border. Protesters were also ejected from the location by Punjab Police.
The whole route would be cleaned and made accessible to traffic, according to Patiala Senior Superintendent of Police Nanak Singh.
“A few people showed a willingness to go home,” SSP Singh told the media report, emphasizing that they did not use force since the farmers who were protesting cooperated with police. They were thus bussed home. The road will be cleansed completely and made accessible to vehicles.
