Farmers in Punjab gathered at the Golden Gate in Amritsar on Wednesday to protest against the Bhagwant Mann-led Punjab government.
DSP Maninder Singh Pal confirmed that all necessary arrangements had been made for the protest. “All arrangements are in place. Force has been deployed. We are alert. Farmers are here. Protest will be done here (at Golden Gate),” Pal said.
Meanwhile, speaking to ANI, farmer leader Sarwan Singh Pandher said that they will burn effigies of Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann in different districts of the state to mark their protest. Pandher also demanded the release of farmers who were allegedly arrested by Punjab Police.
“We will have programmes in around 18 districts. At 21 locations in Amritsar alone, we will burn effigies of Bhagwant Mann government. Today’s programme will be done at hundreds of locations across Punjab. SKM’s Punjab Union’s leader was detained along with the leadership of Kisan Majdoor Morcha. So, today’s programme is against the human rights violations of farmers. It will be done peacefully. We demand that all arrested farmers should be released,” Pandher told ANI.
Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee leader Gurbachan Singh Chhaba strongly condemned Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann and accused him of instigating people. Chhaba also condemned CM Mann for leaving the meeting with the farmers midway, stating that they have seen such a Chief Minister for the first time who leaves the meeting.
Speaking to ANI, Chhaba said, “Bhagwant Mann Government in Punjab left the meeting with farmers. We have seen such a CM for the first time, someone who leaves a meeting with farmers midway. Someone who gets the houses of farmer leaders raided, detained them at their houses and detained some others at police stations and got them arrested. Bhagwant Mann Government is playing into the hands of the Centre to violate the human rights of farmers. People will never accept this. We will burn the effigy of Bhagwant Mann. We will demand that farmers be allowed to protest and their demand be met. Our demands are not unlawful. We condemn this government. Our protest is always peaceful. Bhagwant Mann is instigating people. This is bad.”
The protesting farmers want their demands met. They are asking the Punjab government to implement a minimum support price for six crops, introduce a loan waiver scheme, pay outstanding dues to sugarcane farmers, compensate families of farmers who died during the protests, waive electricity bills for motors on the Sirhind Feeder Canal, and set up a sub-committee for discussions between the government and farmers. In total, they have 18 demands.
