Monthly Archives: August 2018

New Delhi, February 23

Agitating farmer union on Tuesday objected to Delhi Police putting posters that allegedly warned off protesters at the Tikri border site, even as the force claimed these were not new and only informed the protesters that they would not be allowed to enter the national capital.

In a statement, the Samyukta Kisan Morcha, an umbrella body of farmer unions that is spearheading the ongoing agitation against the three agri laws, said it is opposed to the police’s move as the protesters were exercising their constitutional right and appealed to the farmers to continue their sit-in peacefully.

Thousands of farmers, mostly from Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh, have been camping at three Delhi border points — Singhu, Tikri and Ghazipur — for nearly 90 days, demanding a complete repeal of the three agri laws and a legal guarantee on Minimum Support Price for crops.

“The Delhi Police has placed some posters at the Tikri border protest site where farmers have been warned that they will have to vacate the area. Such posters are irrelevant as farmers have been staging a peaceful protest by exercising their constitutional rights….

“We will oppose the conspiracy to end the protest with these kinds of threats and warnings,” the SKM said in the statement.

In the posters, the police have not given any deadline to the protesting farmers to vacate the area.

On its part, the Delhi Police said it is a “routine” process.

“The posters were pasted at the border area after the protest started. It is a routine exercise. Police have conveyed to them through posters that they are sitting in the jurisdiction of Haryana and they are not allowed to enter the national capital unlawfully,” a senior police officer said.

Thousands of protesters had clashed with the police during a tractor parade called by the agitating farmer unions on January 26.

After police permitted the rally, many protesters deviated from the agreed route and reached the Red Fort on tractors. They entered the monument and some of them even hoisted religious flags at the ramparts.

The government has projected the three farm laws as major reforms in the agriculture sector that will remove the middlemen and allow farmers to sell anywhere in the country.

However, the protesting farmers have expressed apprehensions that these laws would pave the way for eliminating the safety cushion of Minimum Support Price and scrap the mandis, leaving them at the mercy of big corporates.

The Centre has maintained that the MSP and mandi systems will continue and will also be strengthened. PTI

Chandigarh, February 22

Punjab’s main opposition party AAP on Monday said it would organise a ‘Kisan Mahasammelan’ in Moga district on March 21 in support of the ongoing farmers’ agitation against the Centre’s contentious agri laws.

Party’s national convenor and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal will be invited to attend the event, it said.

Thousands of farmers, mostly from Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh, have been camping at Delhi’s border points for nearly three months to press for the repeal of the three agri laws enacted in September last year and a legal guarantee on the minimum support price (MSP).

“The AAP has decided to hold a ‘Kisan Maha Sammelan’ at Bagha Purana in Moga on March 21 in order to further strengthen the ongoing farmers’ agitation,” party MP Bhagwant Mann said.

He said farmers from across Punjab will be invited to participate in the event.

“We want Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal to take part in this ‘mahasammelan’,” he added.

The Aam Aadmi Party has been vocal about its support for the farmers’ agitation. Kejriwal is set to address a ‘Kisan Mahapanchayat’ in Uttar Pradesh’s Meerut on February 28 in support of the protest.

Mann, flanked by AAP’s Punjab unit in charge Jarnail Singh, co-incharge Raghav Chadha and MLA Harpal Singh Cheema, said the Centre should withdraw the three farm laws and provide a legal guarantee on MSP.

The government has said the new farm laws will benefit farmers by freeing them from the clutches of the middlemen and ushering in new technology in the sector.

However, farmers say these legislations will remove the safety net of MSP and leave them at the mercy of big corporates. PTI

New Delhi, February 21

In order to avoid any untoward incident at the protest site where farmers are protesting against the three farm laws enacted by the Centre, the police have beefed up the security at Singhu border and adjoining areas.

Around 100 CCTV cameras at both the stages and many locations including the areas outside restrooms earmarked for women protesters have been installed along with heavy deployment of police personnel near the barricades close to the protest site. Two control rooms for monitoring of CCTV cameras have also been set up behind both the stages.

The number of volunteers for security check at every entry and exit gates along the way from Singhu village to Kundli village has also been increased.

“Activities of people moving around are being monitored and volunteers are keeping a close watch on people coming from outside and farmers staying on tractor trollies. Since there are many cuts for entry and exit towards the villages so the volunteers have been deployed at every possible spot. Volunteers are also patrolling on tractors especially after the sun set,” said Maninder Singh, a member of Krantikari Kisan Union in Punjab who is also part of security management at Singhu.

Height of concrete barricades that were setup earlier by Delhi Police close to the protest site (towards Delhi) have been increased by putting barbed wire on them. Whereas barricades put at four spots along the way from Singhu to Singhola village (Delhi-Chandigarh) highway were added with barbed wire after stone-pelting incidents.

Drone cameras are been used by the security forces to monitor the situation. However, Delhi Police personnel along with the paramilitary forces deployed at the protest site have been decreased while the entry of visitors and mediapersons from the main gate is still banned. —IANS

Jammu, February 21

A 42-year-old Army officer, who died of a cardiac arrest in Ranchi last week, was cremated with full military honours at his hometown of Jammu on Sunday, a defence spokesman said.

Col Vikas Gautam, Commanding Officer, 23 Infantry Division Signal Regiment, died at his place of posting in Ranchi on February 18 and his mortal remains were brought to Jammu on Saturday.

Senior Army officers attended the wreath-laying ceremony before the body was consigned to flames at Shastri Nagar cremation ground on Sunday morning, the spokesman said. He said the officer is survived by his wife and two children. — PTI

GS Paul
Tribune News Service
Amritsar, February 21

The BJP-led Central government was criticised on both the sides of India-Pakistan border for its denial to permit Indian ‘jatha’ to visit Pakistan to take part in the centenary of Nankana Sahib massacre, known as Saka Nankana Sahib, on Sunday.

Akal Takht officiating Jathedar Giani Harpreet Singh addressed the Pakistan devotees’ digitally through ‘zoom’ and appreciated the Pakistan authorities for organising the event to pay homage to the hundreds of Sikhs who laid down their lives for the sake of Sikh Panth and the shrine’s administration.

In Pakistan, around 2,000 Sikhs and Nanak Naam leva sangat attended the occasion.  Federal Minister Brig (Retd) Ejaz Shah was the chief guest.

Pakistan Sikh Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (PSGPC) president Satwant Singh told that all the arrangements were made in collaboration with the Evacuee Trust Property Board.

“Pakistan had issued 720 visas to Indian devotees as special permission to attend the occasion but in vain,” he said.

The SGPC marked the occasion at Godharpur village in Gurdaspur district, where the kin of Bhai Lachhman Dass Singh Dharowali, who was killed during Nankana Sahib massacre, lived.

Launching an attack on the Central government, Giani Harpreet Singh said the BJP-led Central government has been playing politics of “polarisation”.

“Since 1947, the minorities like Muslims and Sikhs were being targeted politically, socially, economically and religiously only to grab powers through votes from the majority community. The Sikhs ought to be politically strong while burying internal conflicts,” he said.

On Centre’s move to restrict Indian Jatha to Nankana Sahib, he said it was a fallout of Sikhs’ active participation in protest against the newly enacted farm laws.

He said that even if the Centre attempted to intercept the Sikh jathas on Gurpurabs ahead, the Sikhs would never bow down before the Centre.

“I want to clarify to the Central government that its attempt to desist the Sikhs’ participation in farm protest could never be fructified. A century ago, the British government had stopped the Sikh jatha heading to Nankana Sahib, a day after the massacre, led by Jathedar Kartar Singh Jhabbar and today the BJP’s Central government did the same,” he said.

He said the Sikhs would commemorate Saka Nankana Sahib martyrs every year and the occasion would also memorise the Centre’s move to stop Sikh jatha to Nankana Sahib.

Addressing a gathering, SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal also questioned the Centre for its denial to jatha and the CM for not taking up the issue.

“Even few days back few persons were granted permission to visit Pakistan at the insistence of Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh,” he said.

SGPC president Bibi Jagir Kaur urged Sikhs to unite under the banner of the SGPC and also announced to construct a Guru Ka Langar hall in remembrance of Bhai Lachhman Singh and a library in memory of the martyrs of Nankana Sahib in their native villages.