Delhi govt to provide essential amenities to farmers at Nirankari Maidan
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Farmers on their way to cross Singhu Border and enter Delhi during 'Delhi Chalo' protest march against the new farm laws, in New Delhi, Friday, Nov. 27, 2020
As Farmers from Punjab have been allowed to demonstrate at the Nirankari grounds in Delhi's Burari to protest against the Centre's agricultural laws,Delhi government has decided to provide basic facilities to the farmers at Nirankari grounds, beginning with drinking water.
The Arvind Kejriwal government in Delhi has asked its MLA and Delhi Jal Board vice-chairman Raghav Chadha to take stock of the situation by reaching Burari.
"Raghav Chadha, Vice Chairman, Delhi Jal Board, will visit the Nirankari grounds, Burari on Friday evening. Proper arrangements for drinking water will be made for farmers who are protesting at the approved protest site. Water tankers are being deployed here. To oversee the preparations, DJB vice-president Raghav Chadha is going to the dharna site," said Delhi government in a press briefing,
Earlier Kejriwal government had rejected the proposal of Delhi Police to convert nine stadium in Delhi into temporary jails. The Delhi government has issued an official statement supporting the farmers. The state government says the farmers demands are justified and they have the right to protest.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has stated that the Centre's three farming laws are anti-farmer.
"Instead of withdrawing these laws, farmers are being prevented from protesting peacefully, water canons are being turned on them. This atrocity on farmers is completely wrong. Peaceful demonstrations are their constitutional right," said Kejrival
Meanwhile,Even though Delhi Police on Friday allowed farmers from Punjab, Haryana and elsewhere to hold a peaceful protest against the controversial Agriculture Bills at the Sant Nirankari ground in the capital's Burari area, the farmers refused to leave Delhi-Haryana Sindhu border fearing that their protest would be "weakened".
Delhi Police made the announcement after using tear gas shells and water cannons on the protesting farmers, and undertaking a baton charge to disperse them as they tried to enter Delhi.
"We are holding talks with our representatives as of now to decide whether we will got to Burari ground or not," said Gurpreet Singh, a farmer associated with Bhartiya Kisan Union Ekta in Punjab to IANS,
According to Singh most of the farmers don't want to go at Burari ground and that is the reason why they are all are sitting at Sindhu border,
"Till the time the government does not accept our three demands, we will sit here," he asserted.
Singh said that the farmers have been demanding the revocation of the three Agriculture Bills that were passed in Parliament in September this year, guarantee the minimum support price to farmers and roll back the fine on stubble burning.
Another farmer said that All India Kisan Khet Mazdur Sangthan's leadership are also sitting on the Sindhu border and they too don't want to go to Burari for protests.
The meeting of the farmers at the Sindhu border was still going on Friday evening.
Meanwhile,IANS reports that a farmer, heading to Delhi from Punjab to join the protest against new farm laws, was killed and two others injured. According to police,the incident happened when their tractor-trolley was hit by a truck in Haryana's Bhiwani on Friday.
A case was registered against the truck driver.
"The incident occurred at 4 a.m. at a police barricade in Mundhal, killing Tanna Singh, a resident of Punjab's Mansa, on the spot while two other people were injured," said a Haryana Police spokesperson.
Earlier Haryana-Delhi border witnessed some dramatic scenes as unfazed farmers from Punjab and Haryana were proceeding towards the national capital despite heavy defence from the state administration.The security personnel failed miserably after a violent stand-off at several sites of confrontation.
Farmers were marching in thousands in their trucks, tractors and other vehicles were blocked by Haryana Police with concrete barricades. Confrontations were reported between the protesters and police in Haryana's Karnal, Kaithal, Sirsa, Kurukshetra, Fatehabad and Jind districts.
Police used tear gas to disperse the farmers after they staged a sit-in protest on the road in Singhu border.
Breaking: Tear gas shells fired at #Farmers at the Delhi-Haryana Singhu border.
— Aarif Shah (@aarifshaah) November 27, 2020
Police have moved forward to push farmers back.#FarmersDilliChalo pic.twitter.com/IwHdE8Spwk
When the protesters tried to move away the hindrances, police used water cannons to disperse the farmers.
केंद्र की बेशर्म सरकार किसानों के साथ कर रही है गलत व्यवहार...! #किसान_अब_दिल्ली_फतह_करेगा pic.twitter.com/oBpEa9SBfR
— Dheeraj Gurjar (@dgurjarofficial) November 27, 2020
As per reports, water cannons were lobbed for several hours at various places where the protesters assembled in hundred. ANI news agency tweeted a video which showed protesters being targeted by water-cannons at Tikri border.
#WATCH Delhi: Police use water cannon & tear gas shells to disperse protesting farmers at Tikri border near Delhi-Bahadurgarh highway.
— ANI (@ANI) November 27, 2020
Farmers are seen clashing with security forces, as they tried to head towards Delhi as part of their protest march against Centre's Farm laws. pic.twitter.com/L67PN4xYKy
At Shambu border, farmers chucked barricades into the Ghaggar River from the bridge where they had been stopped.
& @mlkhattar @narendramodi thought the cement structures could stop them.
— Anand Mangnale (@FightAnand) November 27, 2020
The horrible night came to an end with an enthusiastic morning & amazing energy from #farmers, which cleared the road in no time. #DilliChalo #FarmersProtest #FarmersDilliChalo pic.twitter.com/gOlRkg5RKW
In an incredible show of defiance, Navdeep Singh, a young farmer from Ambala, was seen jumping from his truck to the water cannon and shut the tap and landed back to his truck. The video of the same by this time gone viral.
How a young farmer comrade from Ambala Navdeep Singh braved police lathis to climb and turn off the water cannon tap and jump back on to a tractor trolley 🔥#FarmerProtest #FarmersDilliChalo #FarmersDelhiProtest #MazdoorKisanStrike
— Praveen Gavit (@praveengavit10) November 26, 2020
Source: Instagram pic.twitter.com/K79Hs8tDljOn Thursday, a large group of farmers had reached at Panipat, about 100 km from Delhi.
The protesters sat on the road refusing to go back and cooked food while the women and children in the group assisted them.
अन्नदाता ने सड़क पर ही रसोई सजा ली l 👏👏
— Surya Pratap Singh IAS Rtd. (@suryapsingh_IAS) November 26, 2020
निहत्था किसान कल दिल्ली कूच करेगा, चाहे मिलिट्री लगा लो l
दिल्ली किसान की भी है,सरकार की जागीर नहीं l pic.twitter.com/3yThe1VDKE
As the police slowly retreated, the protesters managed to move the hindrances deploying all their might. In one such instance, a truck placed across Delhi-Bahadurgarh highway was seen beingtowed using tractors.
#WATCH Farmers use a tractor to remove a truck placed as a barricade to stop them from entering Delhi, at Tikri border near Delhi-Bahadurgarh highway pic.twitter.com/L65YLRlkBo
— ANI (@ANI) November 27, 2020
In Sonepat Fatha, a truck put across the road was pushed away by the mighty farmers.
Sonepat Fateh ! Hun dilli di waari pic.twitter.com/CrYt9Rk4pb
— Arun Arora (@Arun2981) November 27, 2020
Journalist Zeba Warsi tweeted a video which showed farmers crossing Delhi border in hundreds on Thursday morning.
Reporting from Sonepat: Protesting Farmers have managed to bring down the cement blocks and are now crossing over.
— Zeba Warsi (@Zebaism) November 27, 2020
Farmers crossing Sonepat, on their way to the National Capital. #FarmersProtest #DilliChalo pic.twitter.com/IrvDdq3BDa
It is learnt that about 3000 vehicles with thousands of farmers crossed Sapla and were heading towards Tikriwal Delhi border on Thursday morning.
As the farmers are proceeding with the march, social media were flooded with messages of solidarity and support with hashtags DilliChalo and IamwithFarmers.
Delhi borders are burdened with traffic blocks with police checking vehicles coming in from Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. Metro services between Delhi and NCR areas are restricted since Wednesday.
The farmers are demanding the repeal of the recently passed farm laws which dismantles the agriculture produce market mechanism allegedly in favour of corporate houses.
Farmers apprehend that the laws will lead to the undermining of the minimum support price (MSP) system.