News Analysis India

Tag: Farmers stir

  • Farmers’ stir: Haryana extends mobile Internet curbs in seven districts till Wednesday evening

    By PTI
    CHANDIGARH: The Haryana government on Tuesday further extended the suspension of mobile Internet services till 5 pm on February 3 in seven districts of the state amid a protest by farmers against the Centre’s three farm laws.

    An official statement said, “The Haryana government has extended the suspension of mobile Internet services (2G/3G/4G/CDMA/GPRS), SMS services (only bulk SMS) and all dongle services etc provided on mobile networks except the voice calls in seven districts–Kaithal, Panipat, Jind, Rohtak, Charkhi Dadri, Sonipat and Jhajjar–till 5 pm on February 3.”

    It said the order has been issued to prevent any disturbance of peace and public order in the jurisdiction of these districts of Haryana and shall be in force with immediate effect. Any person found guilty of violation of the aforesaid order will be liable for legal action under relevant provisions, it said.

    The government’s move to suspend mobile Internet services in 17 districts earlier and later on keeping these suspended at a few places saw protests by farmers in the state. Farmers on Tuesday blocked the national highway near the Khatkar toll plaza near Narwana in Jind to protest against the curbs.

    Azad Singh Palwa, a Khap leader, alleged that the suspension of Internet services is adversely affecting various sections, particularly students. “The final examinations of students are approaching. Many students are preparing for entrance exams, but their studies are being hit due to Internet suspension,” he said.

    INLD leader Abhay Singh Chautala told reporters in Jind that the suspension of the mobile internet services in some parts had affected office work and the studies of the students.

  • Farmers’ stir: Mobile internet suspension now extended only in seven Haryana districts

    By PTI
    CHANDIGARH: The Haryana government on Monday further extended the suspension of mobile internet services till 5 pm on February 2 in seven districts of the state “to prevent any disturbance of peace and public order” amid protests by farmers against three new farm laws that witnessed violence earlier this week.

    According to an official statement issued here, the Haryana government has extended the suspension of mobile internet services (2G/3G/4G/CDMA/GPRS), SMS services (only Bulk SMS) and all dongle services etc. provided on mobile networks except voice calls in seven districts — Kaithal, Panipat, Jind, Rohtak, Charkhi Dadri, Sonipat and Jhajjar till 5 pm on February 2.

    This order is issued to prevent any disturbance of peace and public order in the jurisdiction of these districts of Haryana and shall be in force with immediate effect. Any person who will be found guilty of violation of aforesaid order will be liable for legal action under relevant provisions, it said.

    ALSO READ| Protesting farmers announce three-hour nationwide ‘chakka jam’ on February 6

    The suspension of mobile internet has not been extended in Ambala, Bhiwani, Sirsa, Fatehabad, Kurukshetra, Karnal and Hisar, where it was suspended until 5 pm February 1. On Sunday, the government had also not extended suspension of mobile internet in Yamunanagar, Palwal and Rewari districts, where the mobile internet services were suspended until 5 pm of January 31.

    Commenting on the suspension of mobile internet services in some Haryana districts, Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar had on Sunday said the decision was taken in the wake of the situation which had built up following incidents of violence in the national capital on January 26.

    Khattar had said mobile internet had been suspended in some districts for a temporary period and will be restored once the law and order situation returns to normal. The government had on January 26 ordered the suspension of mobile internet services in Sonipat, Jhajjar and Palwal districts after a violent farmers’ protest rocked Delhi.

    On Friday, it had extended the suspension to some other districts. Thousands of protesting farmers had clashed with the police during the tractor rally in Delhi called by farmer unions on January 26 to highlight their demand for the repeal of the Centre’s three new farm laws.

    Many protesters, driving tractors, reached the Red Fort and entered the monument. Some protesters even hoisted religious flags on its domes and the flagstaff at the ramparts, where the national flag is unfurled by the prime minister on Independence Day.

  • Protesting farmers announce three-hour nationwide ‘chakka jam’ on February 6

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: Farmer unions on Monday announced a countrywide ‘chakka jam’ on February 6 when they would block national and state highways for three hours in protest against the internet ban in areas near their agitation sites, harassment allegedly meted out to them by authorities, and other issues.

    Union leaders told a press conference at the Singhu Border here that they will block the roads between 12 pm to 3 pm on February 6. They also alleged that farmers have been “ignored” in the Union Budget 2021-22, and water and power supply have been curtailed at their protest venues.

    The Samkyukt Kisan Morcha, an umbrella body of protesting unions, also alleged that the Twitter accounts of Kisan Ekta Morcha and a user named ‘Tractor2Twitter’ have been restricted. Swaraj Abhiyan leader Yogendra Yadav alleged the action against the Twitter account was taken on the “request of government authorities”.

    He also claimed that the Union government has “reduced the allocation to agriculture sector” in this budget.

  • 2021 Budget does not matter, only concerned about having farm laws repealed: Protesting farmers

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: Farmers protesting at various sites on the border of Delhi on Monday unequivocally said they are only concerned about their common goal of having the three farm laws repealed, and what has been offered to the agriculture sector in the Union budget did not matter.

    At Singhu Border, most farmers were rather clueless about the Budget, saying they were “unable to access the internet” at the protest site, so couldn’t get to know the details. “Our demand was to increase the price of crops, not agriculture credit. This is a conspiracy to take away your land. Within 10-15 years, the corporate will take your land. The fight is for rate of crops, not for credit. They didn’t talk about MSP. There is nothing for farmers,” farmer leader Rakesh Tikait told PTI.

    “The administration has put barbed wires on three roads. They are stopping movement of vehicles towards Delhi, not us. We have been waiting to talk to the prime minister for the past seven years. PM Modi, give us your mobile number. We are ready to talk,” he added.

    ALSO READ| Farmers’ stir: Ghazipur turns fortress, nails cemented on roads leading to protest site

    Randhir Singh (48), from Kaithal district of Haryana, who has been camping there since December, said, “Our only goal right now is to see the three laws repealed. Union budget is not of immediate concern to us.”

    Pala Ram, also from the same village as Singh, echoed similar views. “Some people told me about the points made for the agriculture sector, but that is something, we are not worried about at the moment,” he said.

    Avtar Singh (65), from Punjab’s Patiala, said that the government should have offered ways to increase farmers’ income and not just credit target.

    ALSO READ| Farmers will not benefit from Union Budget 2021: Congress

    Ranjeet Raju, state president, Gramin Kisan Majdoor Samiti, Sri Ganga Nagar said, “If the government wants to help, they should take steps to increase farmers’ income, not by increasing agriculture credit target. This is like pushing farmers into the debt trap, which eventually leads to more farmer suicides. And micro-irrigation corpus, which I am told is doubled in this Budget, is something that goes to industries in the name of farmers.”

    “Farmers didn’t expect much from the present Budget. But were curious to know the funds marked for the agriculture sector.  were bereft of those details too this time,” said Jehangir (31), a farmer hailing from Bihar.

  • Beware of anti-social elements misusing farmers’ stir: Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan

    By PTI

    INDORE: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Sunday appealed to BJP workers to beware of those elements, who he said were purportedly carrying out anti-national and anti-social activities by misusing farmers’ agitations in Delhi.

    “BJP workers should develop an understanding to identify such people,” Chouhan is quoted as saying in a release while speaking at the first meeting of the newly-formed BJP state executive committee here. Chouhan said that a good understanding existed between the state government and the BJP in Madhya Pradesh. “The BJP is going to better its tally in the upcoming civic polls,” the CM said.

    During their January 26 parade, scores of protesters had stormed the Red Fort in Delhi, with some of them hoisting religious flags on its ramparts.

    Thousands of farmers, mostly from Punjab, Haryana and parts of UP have been protesting at Delhi’s borders for over two months now, demanding a rollback of the Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020 and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.

    The government has offered some concessions including keeping the new farm laws on hold for 1-1.5 years and the Supreme Court has set up a panel to look into the matter while keeping the contentious legislation in abeyance for two months.

    However, the agitating farmer unions have rejected both and intensified their stir.

  • Meghalaya governor Satya Pal Malik warns Centre not to suppress farmers’ movement

    By ANI
    NEW DELHI: Meghalaya Governor Satya Pal Malik on Sunday urged the Centre not to suppress the farmers’ movement but to listen to their concerns about the three farm laws passed during the last Monsoon Session of parliament. “I would warn that suppressing any issue in the world is not a solution. By pressing, it goes down for some time, but then it emerges with even bigger force,” the Governor told ANI.

    Recalling his journey from the agriculture fields to power corridors, Malik said he understood the cause of the farmers. “It is in the interest of the nation to find a speedy solution to this issue. I urge the government to listen to their concerns. Both sides should responsibly engage in talks,” the Meghalaya Governor said.

    ALSO READ| Farm laws a ‘fire’ which would lead to losses: Bharatiya Kisan Union president Naresh Tikait

    Showing towards farmers protesting at Delhi’s border area for over two months, Malik said the government show ‘greatness’ and solve the issue keeping the interest of farmers in mind. “The way farmers have been lying outside for 60 days, their family members moving back and forth between Delhi and their homes, the household work is stopped. The farmers have no sense of surety. The government has its own compulsions, but the government’s role is on top. The government has everything in its hands. It should solve this issue by showing greatness, and the interest of the farmer should be solved keeping the interest of farming in mind,” he stated.

    Meanwhile, Malik took a strong exception to the violence that happened on January 26 in Delhi during farmers’ tractor rally and said he is confident that those who violated law and order during tractor rally were not farmers.

    “On January 26, there were miscreants involved in violence. By and large farmers protest has been quiet that day. Farmers endured everything, they suffered, and they are not furious. I do not want to put them in that category. I will ask them to negotiate with intelligence with the government,” he added.

    When asked if he can act as a mediator between Centre and protesting farmers, Governor categorically denied it, saying the government would solve it by itself.

  • Farm laws a ‘fire’ which would lead to losses: Bharatiya Kisan Union president Naresh Tikait

    By PTI
    MUZAFFARNAGAR: Bharatiya Kisan Union national president Naresh Tikait has termed farm laws a “fire” (aag) which would lead to losses and has urged the Centre to repeal them. A video of Tikait speaking to reporters in Muzaffarnagar was shared on social media on Sunday.

    ALSO READ| Will honour PM’s dignity, but also protect farmers’ self-respect: Naresh Tikait

    In the video, he said, “Repeal this bill, this is a fire. This is a fire which will lead to many losses. (iss bill ko dabaa do, yeh aag hai, yeh bahut nuksaan ki aag hai). If the laws are repealed then the government does not stand to lose anything. The bills have put on hold for one-and-half years. Accept your fault, and hold talks.”

    इब के इन्होंने गलत जगह हाथ गेर दिया। माँगे माने बिना हम मानने वाले नहीं। लाठी-गोली कुछ भी चला लो, हम सीने पै गोली खाएंगे, पीठ दिखा के जाने वाले नहीं। इब यो किसान परिवार एकजुट हो लिया।आज बागपत महापंचायत का नज़ारा… pic.twitter.com/c76ge9RWVo
    — Naresh Tikait (@NareshTikait_) January 31, 2021

    Tikait also said, “In this government, Rajnath (Singh) jee is being humiliated (Rajnath jee ki tauheen ho rahi hai iss sarkaar mein). There is nothing in the control of our MPs, they are feeling afraid, and their sympathy is with the farmers.”

  • Farmers’ stir: Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Badal meets Rakesh Tikait at Ghazipur border

    By PTI
    CHANDIGARH: Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal on Sunday met farmer leader Rakesh Tikait at Ghazipur border and presented him with a ‘siropa’ (robe of honour), as he assured his party’s support to the farmers movement.

    Badal said that Tikait had made the farming community proud by following the footsteps of his father Mahendra Singh Tikait, a towering farmer leader, a party statement said. “He reminisced about the joint battles of Mahendra Singh Tikait and SAD patron Parkash Singh Badal for the welfare of the peasantry,” it said.

    Presented ‘siropa’ & ‘amrit’ from Sri Darbar Sahib, Sri Amritsar Sahib, to Kisan leader #RakeshTikait ji & assured @Akali_Dal_’s complete support. Tikait ji has done farming community proud by following in the footsteps of his father & towering farm leader Ch Mahender Tikait Ji. pic.twitter.com/AJz7HL6f4U
    — Sukhbir Singh Badal (@officeofssbadal) January 31, 2021

    The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) chief also met the families of farmers whose next of kin had been missing since January 26, besides those whose relatives have been incarcerated for “supporting” the farmers’ protest, the statement said.

    Badal assured the families that SAD would take up their cases and ensure appropriate legal remedies were made available to them. He also requested his party’s Delhi unit chief Harmit Singh Kalka to establish a control room in the national capital to ensure that aggrieved families were given assistance as and when required.

    The SAD leader said the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee would also contest all such cases free of cost even as he assured the families that a committee of lawyers had been established in Chandigarh and across all districts in Punjab to ensure a coordinated effort in this direction.

    ALSO READ| Republic Day violence: Delhi Police sends over 50 fresh notices to people including farmer leaders

    He requested all political parties to leave aside petty differences and unite for the greater cause of the peasantry. He said it was now clear that farmers of Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh besides those from different parts of the country had formed a united front. “We must strengthen this front further to ensure that the ‘kisan andolan’ is a resounding success,” Badal added.

    Farmers, mostly from Punjab, Haryana and parts of Uttar Pradesh, have been protesting at Delhi borders, demanding a rollback of the Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020 and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.

    The protesting farmers have expressed apprehension that these laws would pave the way for the dismantling of the minimum support price (MSP) system, leaving them at the “mercy” of big corporations. However, the Centre has maintained that the new laws will bring better opportunities to farmers and introduce new technologies in agriculture.

  • Haryana government extends suspension of mobile internet in 14 districts till 5 pm on February 1

    By PTI
    CHANDIGARH: The Haryana government on Sunday further extended the suspension of mobile internet services in 14 districts till 5 pm on February 1 to “prevent any disturbance of peace and public order” amid a protest by farmers against three farm laws.

    According to an official statement issued here, the government has extended the suspension of mobile internet services in districts of Ambala, Kurukshetra, Karnal, Kaithal, Panipat, Hisar, Jind, Rohtak, Bhiwani, Sirsa, Fatehabad, Charkhi Dadri, Sonipat and Jhajjar till 5 pm on February 1.

    In the fresh order issued by the Home Department, the suspension has not been extended in Yamunanagar, Palwal and Rewari districts, where the mobile internet services were suspended earlier. “The Haryana government has extended the suspension of mobile internet services (2G/3G/4G/CDMA/GPRS), SMS services (only bulk SMS) and all dongle services, etc. provided on mobile networks except the voice calls in the territorial jurisdiction of the 14 districts,” the statement said.

    “This order has been issued to prevent any disturbance of peace and public order in the jurisdiction of these districts of Haryana. Any person who will be found guilty of violation of aforesaid order will be liable for legal action under relevant provisions,” it added.

    Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said the decision was taken in the wake of the situation which had built up following incidents of violence in the national capital on January 26. Talking to reporters in Ambala, Khattar said the decision to suspend the internet for a temporary period in that situation was appropriate and it would be restored once things normalise.

    Referring to the criticism of the Congress party which said that suspension of the mobile internet services would also affect the students, Khattar said his government had made all arrangements during the COVID-19 pandemic also to ensure that studies of students were not disrupted.

    Hitting out at the Congress, he alleged that the party has contributed towards the situation which has built up after January 26 incidents. Khattar said that the issue can be resolved through dialogue and added the prime minister has said that doors are always open for talks.

    Congress general secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala had claimed that the internet ban was ordered “with the intention to crush the farmers” agitation” and demanded its immediate resumption. He had said the decision would affect professionals working from home due to the coronavirus pandemic, students, traders and shopkeepers and cause inconvenience to the common people.

    The state government on Tuesday had ordered suspension of mobile internet services in Sonipat, Jhajjar and Palwal districts after a violent farmers’ protest rocked Delhi. On Friday, it extended the suspension to 14 other districts.

    There are a total of 22 districts in the state. Thousands of protesting farmers had clashed with the police during the tractor rally in Delhi called by farmer unions on January 26 to highlight their demand for the repeal of the Centre’s three farm laws.

    Many of the protesters, driving tractors, reached the Red Fort and entered the monument. Some protesters even hoisted religious flags on its domes and the flagstaff at the ramparts.