Ajit Singh supporters lay siege to Delhi

Police foiled a proposed mahapanchayat at his bungalow

Rashtriya Lok Dal supporters being detained in New Delhi on Tuesday. Photo: R. V. Moorthy

The Delhi Police foiled a proposed mahapanchayat at 12 Tughlaq Road, the bungalow occupied until recently by Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) leader Ajit Singh, by supporters of the Jat leader who were demanding its conversion into a memorial for his father and former Prime Minister Charan Singh.

The mahapanchayat was called by the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) and the RLD. Barricades to prevent hundreds of activists from reaching the mahapanchayat affected vehicular movement on several connected Lutyens’ Zone streets.

The recent eviction of Charan Singh’s son and the former Union Minister from the bungalow has triggered a series of protests in parts of Uttar Pradesh and Delhi. During one such protest held at Muradnagar, activists unsuccessfully tried to cut off water supply to Delhi from the Gang Nahar plant.

Fearing a repeat, the Delhi Police had imposed Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code in New Delhi, but the activists, who had come from Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Haryana, defied prohibitory orders and tried to march towards the bungalow. Mr. Ajit Singh and his son Jayant Chaudhary, however, stayed away from the mahapanchayat.

Fearing the situation might go out of hand due to the arrival of a large number of protesters, the police blocked entry to Tughlaq Road from Aurobindo Marg and Akbar Road. Activists of the two parties were also detained at Prithviraj Road, Safdarjung Road, Man Singh Road and several other adjoining roads here. As a measure of abundant precaution, the Race Course metro station was also closed from 8.30 a.m.

By 2.30 p.m., the police had detained close to 250 demonstrators and took them to Parliament Street and Tilak Marg police stations. But those detained remained defiant and accused the Centre of not respecting the legacy of Charan Singh, whom they described as the “greatest farmer leader” the country has ever produced.

Some also said the move to evict Mr. Ajit Singh from the bungalow could have adverse effect on the BJP’s electoral prospects in the Haryana Assembly elections, because of the RLD leader’s clout in the State. They threatened that more agitations will be launched on the issue in the days to come.