Over 70,000 farmers from Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Punjab and other parts of North India, along with a large convoy of tractors and trolleys, marched towards Delhi. National Highways leading to the Capital were swamped with farmers who came in from places as far as Gonda, Basti, and Gorakhpur in eastern Uttar Pradesh, and the sugarcane belt of western Uttar Pradesh. The Kisan Kranti Yatra began from Tikait Ghat in Haridwar on September 23.
The farmers, riding tractors and trolleys, broke barricades of the UP Police and then started proceeding towards the barricades put up by the Delhi Police, blocking traffic movement on arterial roads leading to the national capital.. The protest was over demands ranging from farm loan waiver to cut in fuel prices.
Police had to use water cannons to disperse the protestors, who also indulged in sloganeering. Tear gas was also used to disperse the crowd. The city police had on Monday imposed prohibitory orders in east and northeast Delhi, anticipating law and order problems as thousands of BKU members are on a march from Haridwar to reach the national capital Tuesday.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Tuesday that preventing a protest march of farmers from entering the national capital was "wrong" and pitched for allowing them entry into the city. "Why are the farmers being stopped from entering Delhi? It is wrong. Delhi belongs to all. They should be allowed to enter Delhi. We support their demands," he told reporters on the sidelines of an event held at the Delhi assembly to mark Gandhi Jayanti.
Home Minister Rajnath on Tuesday held discussions with Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh and a few others on how to resolve the farmers' issues and pacify them. The home minister also spoke to BKU chief Naresh Tikait over phone, and conveyed the government's keenness to address their demands.
BKU leaders on Tuesday said that their meeting with Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh over farmers' demands was "satisfactory" and that seven of their nine demands were accepted, while the Centre was non-committal on loan waiver and higher MSP. The Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) is expected to take a decision on calling off its 10-day long protest after its Executive Committee meeting on Tuesday evening. Yudhvir Singh said their seven demands were accepted.
The protesting farmers, however, decided to stay put at the Delhi border, where they have been stopped by the police from entering the national capital. Naresh Tikait, the chief of Bharat Kisan Union (BKU), which has given the protest call, said the farmers are "not satisfied" with the government's assurance. The protesting farmers, however, decided to stay put at the Delhi border, where they have been stopped by the police from entering the national capital. Naresh Tikait, the chief of Bharat Kisan Union (BKU), which has given the protest call, said the farmers are "not satisfied" with the government's assurance.