Farmers' Protest: Protesters Evicted, Bulldozer Deployed To Clear Shambhu Border; Several Leaders Detained

In a drastic move, Punjab Police on Wednesday evicted protesting farmers from the Punjab-Haryana Shambhu Border and cleared the area. Bulldozers were deployed to remove concrete barricades which were erected over a year ago in a bid to restrict the agitating farmers' movement further from where they were sitting on a protest over various demands.

The police's action came after several farmer leaders, including Sarwan Singh Pandher and Jagjit Singh Dallewal, were detained in Mohali while returning from a meeting with a central delegation.

Commenting on the police action at Punjab-Haryana Shambhu order, Patiala SSP Nanak Singh told ANI, "Farmers had been protesting at Shambhu Border for a long time. Today, in the presence of Duty Magistrates, Police cleared the area after they were given proper warning."

"A few people showed a willingness to go home. So, they were sent home on a bus. In addition, the structures and vehicles here are being moved. The entire road will be cleared and opened for traffic. Haryana Police will also begin their action. Once it opens from their side, the movement on highway will resume. We did not need to use any force because there was no resistance. Farmers cooperated well and they sat in buses by themselves", he further added.

Farmer Leaders Detained

Farmer leaders including Jagjit Singh Dallewal and Sarwan Singh Pandher were detained on Wednesday by Punjab Police in Mohali after they completed their meeting with Union Ministers in Chandigarh and were on their way to Shambhu and Khanauri protest sites.

Dallewal has been on an indefinite fast since November 26 last year and is on medical aid and the told the reporters that they were expecting a response from the Centre on the data presented by the farmers to support their demands.

Apart from Pandher and Dallewal, Abhimanyu Kohar, Kaka Singh Kotra and Manjit Singh Rai have been detained, farmer leader Mangat said, amid reports suggesting a heavy police force has been deployed near Shambhu and Khanauri border points as well.

Meeting With Union Ministers

The meeting between Union Ministers including Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Consumer Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi and Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and the farmer leaders were held at the Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Public Administration in Sector 26 in Chandigarh and continued for more than three hours.

The seventh round of meeting was held between farmer leaders and a central delegation in Chandigarh to discuss various demands farmers remained inconclusive, even as the Union ministers attending the talks called the farmers' interests paramount.

Punjab Minister Defends Move

Defending the police action at Shambhu Border, Punjab Minister Harpal Singh Cheema said that the action was taken as they want to open Shambhu and Khanauri borders.

Speaking to ANI, Cheema said, "The AAP government and the people of Punjab stood with the farmers when they protested against the three black laws. The demands of the farmers are against the central government. It has been more than a year and the Shambhu and Khanauri borders are closed. The traders and youth of Punjab are very upset. When the traders will do business, the youth will get employment and they will stay away from drugs."

"Today's action has been taken because we want the youth of Punjab to get employment. We want to open Shambhu and Khanauri borders. The demands of the farmers are against the central government and they should stage a protest in Delhi or somewhere else but should not block the roads of Punjab", Cheema added.

Opposition Slams AAP-Led Punjab Govt

Opposition parties strongly condemned the AAP-led Punjab government over the detention of the farmer leaders including Sarwan Singh Pandher and Jagjit Singh Dallewal.

Terming it a"cowardly act" of the state government, senior Congress leader Partap Singh Bajwa said it has never happened in the history of Punjab that the government "arrested" the leaders after calling them on the pretext of a meeting.

"Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has backstabbed the entire farming community of Punjab. Punjabis will never forget this and will never forgive him for this shameful act," he said.

BJP leader and Union minister Ravneet Singh Bittu alleged that the AAP government in Punjab was trying to "sabotage" talks between the Centre and farmers.

In a statement, Bittu said that he was shocked to hear the news of Punjab Police action against farmer leaders. "The central government is serious about the farmer's issues and the sudden action of the Punjab government is aimed at sabotaging the talks. Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has betrayed the farmers. Arvind Kejriwal who is camping in Punjab for the last three days has hatched a conspiracy against farmers."