Delhi Police resorted to firing tear gas shells to disperse protesting farmers as they reached the Singhu border (Haryana-Delhi border) on Friday.
According to sources, the Delhi Police has also asked for nine stadiums from the Aam Aadmi Party government to detain the farmers in case they manage to enter the national capital.
Police have tried to negotiate with a delegation of farmers. They have made it clear that the farmers won’t be allowed to cross the border and enter Delhi. The protesters though appear adamant.
There are 32 unions of farmers among others who are taking various routes, Singh, Tikri, and all peripheral towns of the capital are witnessing massive protests.
“We are not here to fight or cause any trouble. We just want to put forward our point peacefully, the police though seems in a confrontation mood,” said a protesting farmer.
Heavy police force including paramilitary has been deployed at Singhu border, Tikri border, Delhi-Gurugram border, and Faridabad border. At Singh border, the Delhi Police has put barbed wires and Boulder barricades to stop farmers’ trolleys heading towards the capital city.
They have used innovative tactics by putting up trolleys filled with mud and sand to break their advance. The farmers are protesting three Farm Laws, including one on MSP.
Drones have also been deployed to check the farmer’s march from a distance. Senior police officers are themselves monitoring the border areas. At the Mundka-Delhi-Haryana border, the confrontation was seen between farmers and Police where the farmers tried to penetrate the security ring of the paramilitary and Police.
The Delhi Police has already made it clear that strict action as per law would be taken against the farmers if they try to enter Delhi. Some 500 farmers’ organizations from six states — Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, and Kerala have been planning this march for two months to press the central government to repeal the recently enacted farm laws.
