Tens of thousands of farmers, led by the central leadership of the Samyukt Kisan Morcha, including Rakesh Tikait, Yogendra Yadav and Gurnam Singh Charuni, laid siege to the mini secretariat at Karnal on Tuesday evening. The sit-in protests followed after talks between the farmer leaders and the district administration over the brutal police baton charge of farmers a week ago broke down.
Mr. Yadav, talking to the media, said the talks failed after the administration refused to agree to the farmers’ bare minimum demand to initiate an inquiry against IAS officer Ayush Sinha for ordering the police to “crack the heads” of the farmers, and suspend him pending an inquiry. Mr. Yadav said the Haryana government, like the Kauravs who refused to part with even with five villages, turned down the bare minimum demand of the farmers, causing the three rounds of talks to fail.
The other demands of the farmer leaders included compensation to the injured farmers and government job to the next of the kin of farmer Sushil Kajal, who died during lathicharge, said Inderjit Singh, vice-president, All-India Kisan Sabha, Harayana, who was part of the 15-member delegation that held talks with the district administration.
“The talks could not move further after the administration refused to take action against the IAS officer. Instead of taking action against the said officer, the district administration officials seemed to support him,” said Mr. Singh.
After the two-hour long talks failed, the farmers, who had gathered in huge numbers at city’s grain market for a mahapanchayat, began marching towards the mini secretariat housing the offices of the Deputy Commissioner and other senior district officials. The police briefly detained the SKM leadership, including Mr. Yadav and Mr. Tikait, at Namaste Chowk, but let them off in the wake of resistance from the agitating farmers. The police used water cannon and also put barricades at several points on way to mini secretariat to stop the farmers march.
The police parked a truck near the mini secretariat to prevent the farmers from taking their tractors and trolleys beyond it, but the farmers managed to reach outside the building on foot, breaking through the barricades, and sat on a dharna.
“We tried to detain the farmer leaders as they had earlier offered to court arrest. But they probably had a change of plan and continued to march towards the mini secretariat. We are keeping a close watch on the situation and would not allow them to indulge in any kind of violence,” said Mamta Singh, Inspector General of Police, Karnal Range.
Earlier, farmers from across the State gathered at the city’s grain market around noon in response to the call from the SKM after the government refused to accept their demands. The Haryana administration had imposed Section 144 in Karnal, suspended Internet and SMS services in five districts and made elaborate security arrangements in view of the farmers call for a mahapanchayat.
Congress challenge
“Modi ji, Khattar sahib, if the government can go to Doha and talk to Taliban, why can't the government talk to our annadatas who are peacefully protesting for the 10 months on the borders of Delhi, barely 20 kms from the Prime Minister's residence,” asked Congress general secretary Randeep Surjewala.
Addressing the media in Delhi, Mr. Surjewala said if Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar can't talk to farmers to resolve their issues, he has no right to be in power.
