farmers-blame-pb-haryana-for-defaming-protest

Punjab and Haryana governments conspire to defame ongoing agitation, said protesting farmers on Tuesday, sitting at the  Shambhu border in Punjab's Patiala district over various demands. The farmers also demanded the arrest of miscreants who allegedly tried to create a ruckus at the protest. 

 

As per claims of farmers, a group of individuals on Sunday attempted to take control of the stage at the protest. Meanwhile, the individuals, comprising traders from Ambala, refuted these allegations, saying their sole intention was to draw attention to their financial losses resulting from the blockade of the Ambala-Ludhiana national highway and urged the farmers to end the blockade.

 

Addressing reporters at the Shambhu border, KMM leader Dilbagh Singh Harigarh alleged that some "miscreants" had "hatched a conspiracy to defame" the farmers' stir. 

 

"We have not blocked any road. It is the Centre which has created obstacles on the highway," he said, adding the farmers have been demanding since day one that the road be cleared so they can move towards Delhi. 

 

"The miscreants were backed by the Punjab and Haryana governments and the Centre. We demand that those who tried to create a ruckus at the (protest) site should be booked and arrested," said Harigarh. 

 

Bharatiya Kisan Union (Ekta Sidhupur) leader Kaka Singh said it was not the farmers but the Haryana government which had put up blockades on the national highway to prevent them from marching to Delhi. 

 

"If the government clears the blockades today, we will go to Delhi," he said. 

 

Singh claimed that villagers from the nearby areas were completely supporting the farmers' agitation. 

 

Bharatiya Kisan Union (Shaheed Bhagat Singh) president Amarjit Singh Mohri accused the state governments of hatching a conspiracy to defame and weaken the agitation. 

 

Farmers have been camping at the Shambhu and Khanauri border points between Punjab and Haryana since February 13 after their march to Delhi was stopped by security forces. 

 

The march was led by the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (KMM) to press the government to accept their demands such as a legal guarantee on minimum support price (MSP) for crops.