Order continued despite Haryana Police injuring 160 farmers: Punjab tells Center

Tear gas was used again on Wednesday at Shambhu border.

Chandigarh:

In a strong reaction to an advisory issued by the Home Ministry in the wake of the farmers’ agitation, the Punjab government has said it is “completely wrong” to say that the state is allowing protesters to gather at the borders. It claimed that despite over 160 people being injured due to the use of tear gas shells, rubber bullets, drones and physical force by the Haryana Police, the Punjab government maintained the law and order situation “responsibly”. Has been kept.

Following reports of over 14,000 people gathering at the Punjab-Haryana border with 1,200 tractor-trolleys and other vehicles ahead of the resumption of the ‘Delhi Chalo’ march on Wednesday, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) warned of the “deteriorating situation”. Had expressed concern about. “Law and order situation in Punjab and asked the state government to take action.

In a letter written by Punjab Chief Secretary Anurag Verma on Wednesday, the state government has said that it has not received the orders passed by the Punjab and Haryana High Court the previous day in which it had asked farmers not to use tractor-trolleys . On th eway. The order has also not been uploaded on the court website.

Mr Verma said the farmers were going to Delhi to protest and were stopped at the border of Punjab and Haryana due to restrictions on movement.

The letter said, “So far, more than 160 people have been injured by tear gas shells, rubber bullets, physical force and drones used by the Haryana Police. Even after that, the Punjab government has responsibly maintained law and order. “The situation has been maintained.” ,

Calling for greater sympathy towards the farmers, the Chief Secretary said that law and order should be handled more sensitively during the protests as Punjab is a border state.

The Punjab government also stressed that it had played a key role in the talks, pointing out that Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann had participated in three out of four meetings between the Center and farmers. The letter said Mr Mann had sent a cabinet minister and high-ranking officials to the only meeting, which he could not attend.

The Secretary said that 2,000 police personnel, including DIG rank IPS of Punjab Police and officers of the Provincial Police Service, are working to maintain peace and order. “We are continuously monitoring the situation and will take action if necessary,” he said.

Tear gas was used again at the Shambhu border on Wednesday after farmers attempted to march towards Delhi to press their demands, including a legal guarantee for minimum support price. Confronted with farmers standing in queues with soil removal machines, Haryana Police has warned the farmers to stand down.

Warning against “unruly elements” trying to “hijack the talks”, Agriculture Minister Arjun Munda has invited farmers back to the negotiating table for the fifth round of discussions and urged the protesters to remain peaceful. .