The farmers unions under the banner of Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) held a mahapanchayat at Jantar Mantar pressing their demands including legal guarantee to minimum support price, withdrawal of Agnipath scheme, arrest of Union Minister Ajay Mishra Teni, justice to those farmers’ familes who lost their loved ones in the Lakhimpur Kheri “massacre” and release of the farmers who are in jail for the last nine months. SKM claimed that farmers were being stopped from reaching Jantar Mantar. However, the Delhi Police denied the claim. The farmers’ union said that the mahapanchayat had ended today and a meeting will be convened at the Rakabganj Gurdwara to decide our future strategy.
The national Capital on Monday witnessed massive traffic jams at Delhi borders with some of the commuters getting stuck for more than an hour amid curbs put in place by the Delhi Police in wake of mahapanchayat call given by farmers. Police said that all vehicles entering the capital are being checked and the police personnel are on ‘alert mode’.
Since Monday morning, amid beefed up security at Delhi borders due to the ‘mahapanchayat’ called by farmers’ body, long queue of vehicles were seen at the Ghazipur and Singhu border as each one was being checked by the police. Police said that this is part of the security arrangements put in place in view of the ‘mahapanchayat’. Massive traffic jam was also witnessed near on roads adjoining the borders, including, Karnal road, Libas Pur, Samaypur Badali, Narela.
Dependra Pathak, the Special Commissioner of Police, Law and Order said, “We have made adequate arrangements to ensure that law and order is maintained and there is no loss of life and property.”
During the daylong mahapanchayat, the farmers carrying the flags of their unions raised slogans against the BJP-led Centre for “not fulfilling” its promises. Farmers wearing pagadis (turban), mostly green and yellow demanded a law ensuring minimum support price for crops, farm loan waiver, and sacking of Union minister Ajay Mishra.
The farmers, who came from Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Odisha and Kerala, among other states, submitted a memorandum containing their six-point demands to President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. They said a meeting of the SKM (NP) will be held on Tuesday to decide the future course of action.
“In the mahapanchayat, we deliberated on our nine-point demand letter. This included a legal guarantee on the minimum support price (MSP) for crops and the cancellation of the Electricity (Amendment) Bill, 2022 among others,” said Abhimanyu Singh Kohar, an SKM (NP) member and one of the organisers of the “mahapanchayat”.