Authorities 'in northern Indian state bulldoze' farmers’ year-long protest site

By Anadolu staff

ANKARA (AA) - Authorities in northern Indian Punjab state launched a crackdown to remove the farmers protesting for over a year to press the government to guarantee a minimum support price for all crops.

In a surprise action late Wednesday night, police in the state ruled by the Aam Aadmi Party detained hundreds of the farmers who have been protesting at two sites at the border between Haryana and Punjab states for over a year now -- since February last year.

They are demanding a legal guarantee on minimum support price to protect them from price volatility, as well as full debt waivers, farm loan forgiveness, and agricultural reforms.

Nanak Singh, a senior Punjab police official said police cleared the border crossing between Haryana and Punjab on Wednesday night, after farmers were given proper warning.

“The entire road will be cleared and opened for traffic. We did not need to use any force because there was no resistance,” he told reporters.

While the police are yet to reveal how many have been detained, local media reported the number is over 500.

TV footage showed late Wednesday night that police were using bulldozers to demolish tents and stages at the protest site.

The action has triggered condemnation by farm groups and opposition leaders.

“In the ongoing agitation on the border of Punjab, on one hand the government is negotiating with the farmer organizations and on the other hand it is arresting them,” Rakesh Tikait, farm leader and national spokesperson of the farm group Bhartiya Kisan Union – said on X, referring to ongoing negotiations between the federal government and the farm groups.

While condemning the police action, Takait said that “all the farmer organizations are ready for every struggle.”

Fatehjung Singh Bajwa, the vice president of Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Punjab called the action “unjust,” and said it is clear that “this arrest is a deliberate attempt to disrupt the ongoing dialogue between farmers and BJP leadership.”

A meeting between the farmer leaders and federal ministers was held on Wednesday, and the next one is scheduled in May.

Amarinder Singh Raja from the main opposition Congress party in Punjab said the state’s Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has "literally run bulldozers over the peaceful farmer protestors and put them behind bars.”