Distressed farmers marching towards Delhi on Gandhi Jayanti were greeted by security forces with water cannons, lathi-charge and tear gas on Tuesday.
Tuesday’s march towards the national capital marked the conclusion of ten-day long Kisan Kranti Yatra that had started from Haridwar on September 23. Carrying a charter of 11 demands – ranging from increase in MSP to uniform loan waiver – the farmers had planned to end their march by paying a visit to the memorials of Chaudhary Charan Singh at Kisan Ghat and Mahatma Gandhi.
However, the farmers were prevented by police and other security forces triggering clashes between them.
The police action left 14 injured and the images of bleeding farmers went viral. Police alleges farmers broke down barricades with their vehicles to reach Delhi’s Kisan Ghat.
Ironically, the day farmers faced the wrath of cops is celebrated as International Day of Non-Violence.
While some of their demands were accepted, farmers said their “core demands” are still pending forcing them to sleep on the roads of UP-Delhi border in protest.
In the midnight, the police finally allowed them to move towards Delhi and visit memorials of Mahatma Gandhi & Chaudhary Charan Singh at Kisan Ghat. While the protests have fizzled out for now, the continuing agrarian crisis is turning out to be a quandary for BJP in an election year.
