On R-Day, Haryana farmers to stick to their state

Even as protesters at Singhu, Tikri and Ghazipur take out tractor rallies in Delhi on Tuesday, their counterparts in Haryana will undertake a parallel march within the state, leaders from multiple protest sites in South Haryana told The Indian Express.

According to farmer leaders, while protesters gathered at the Haryana-Rajasthan or Shahjahanpur-Khera border will travel on NH-48 up to the NSG campus in Manesar — moving around 58 km closer to Delhi — those in Nuh will conduct a tractor rally within the district. Protesters currently gathered at Masani in Rewari, who had broken through barricades at the Haryana-Rajasthan border on December 31, will also join the tractor rally towards Manesar.

Speaking to The Indian Express, Ramzan Chaudhary, head of the Nuh unit of Jai Kisan Andolan, said, “Shahjahanpur protesters have permission to move till Manesar, while protesters at Sunehra-Junhera border in Nuh will carry out a rally within Nuh. We have gathered details of people joining us in each block; we don’t know how many will turn up on the day, but we are expecting around 1,000 tractors.”

Sanjay Madhav of the Sanyukt Kisan Morcha said protesters from Shahjahanpur, who include those who have joined from Rajasthan, Maharashtra, MP, UP, and Punjab, would try to move “as close as we can to Delhi”. “Wherever we are stopped, we will turn back… we will maintain peace. We will depart at 9 am and are expecting at least 1,000 tractors to participate,” he said.

Gurgaon and Rewari Police confirmed that farmers had been granted permission to carry out a march till the NSG campus. “There is no such limit on tractors permitted to participate but we will take details on how many vehicles will be there, how many volunteers they will appoint,” said Abhishek Jorwal, Superintendent of Police, Rewari.

Gurgaon Police said around 1,400 personnel have been deployed in Manesar to ensure law and order. “We have personnel deployed from district police, Rapid Action Force, and ITBP,” said Varun Singla, DCP (Manesar).

“We will have all requirements related to law and order, including tear gas parties, water cannons, ambulances and fire brigade. The farmers have permission to carry out their rally up to the NSG campus and return,” he said.

In light of the tractor rally being organised on Republic Day, Gurgaon Police Monday carried out a flag march in the city as well, which saw around 150 personnel participating. “A total of around 4,000 personnel will be deployed in Gurgaon on Tuesday, including traffic police personnel. In addition to maintaining law and order, arrangements have also been made for traffic diversions by identifying alternate routes,” said Subhash Boken, PRO of Gurgaon Police.

Rewari Police, on Monday evening, also issued an advisory, requesting commuters to not use the Delhi-Jaipur highway on Tuesday since “traffic can also be disrupted on the highway due to the tractor rally”.

“On the morning of January 26, from Shahjahanpur border and Masani barrage, the farmers’ tractor rally will go via Dharuhera, Bilaspur, Panchgaon NH48 till Polytechnic College Manesar and then return. In this relation, we appeal to people to avoid travel towards Delhi-Jaipur highway NH48, Dharuhera, and Bawal so that they do not experience any inconvenience,” states the advisory.

In Palwal, meanwhile, where farmers from Madhya Pradesh, among others, have been camping for almost two months now, the administration has denied permission to them to carry out any kind of march. Leaders, however, say they will do so regardless.

“We have been having talks with officials for the last 3 days. We wanted to move to Delhi via the Badarpur toll, but have not been given permission for this. We intend to move to Delhi tomorrow regardless,” said farm leader Mahendra Singh Chauhan.

“If police try to stop us, we will lower our hands and not indulge in any violence, but we will not bow down,” he said.

Naresh Narwal, Deputy Commissioner of Palwal, said, “Their request is still under consideration. We have not granted them permission to move towards Delhi because no approval has been received from the authorities there for them to enter the capital. We cannot permit this.”

The District Magistrate of Palwal has also, in light of the farmers’ protest, appointed area-wise duty magistrates in the district to ensure law and order is maintained.