Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Jan 24: As confusion continued to prevail over Delhi police permission to the agitating farmers to take out the proposed tractor rally in Delhi on the Republic Day, the Uttar Pradesh government has reportedly directed the petrol pumps in the highways not to supply diesel to tractors wanting to reach the national capital to participate in the rally.
Though there is no official word on the issue, media reports from across the state said the government in a bid to stop the farmers from UP join their counterparts from other states had asked the supply officers in all the districts not to give diesel to protesting farmers. Thousands of farmers from across the country are planning to join the agitating farmers squatting on the borders of Delhi and participate in the tractor rally as a mark of protest against the central government’s refusal to repeal the three contentious acts.
As soon as the news about Uttar Pradesh government’s decision spread, farmer leader Rakesh Tikait asked the farmers to block roads in cities and towns where they are. Tikait confirmed that he had received complaints from the farmers in Eastern UP that they were refused diesel at the fuel stations to try to prevent them from proceeding further.
While the farmers’ leaders claimed that the tractor rally had been given the official permission by the police, the police sources refused to confirm. The police sources said the farmers had not given anything in writing about the routes it proposed to follow and other details for the rally and therefore the police too had not given any permission in writing as yet. The farmers want to take out the rally on Outer Ring Road while the police have suggested alternate routes.
Emerging from the meeting with the police authorities, farmers’ leaders, however, claimed that an agreement had been reached on the routes of the parade. “Today there was a short meeting with officers of Delhi Police. We have got formal permission from police for the tractor rally. As I told earlier, ‘Kisan Gantantra Parade’ will be held on January 26 in a peaceful manner,” said Yogendra Yadav, whose Swaraj India has been supporting the farmers’ agitation against the three central farm laws.
Other farmer leaders also claimed that the police had given official permission for the rally which would be peaceful and would not interfere with the official Republic Day parade.
“Around one lakh tractor-trolleys from across the country will participate in the parade. Around 30 per cent of these will have tableaux on different themes, including the history of the farmers’ movement in India, the role of women farmers and farming practices followed in different states,” farm leaders said.
A few children from Maharashtra’s Vidarbha region have also planned a tableau on farmer suicides.
“Children of farmers who committed suicide are expected to participate in the parade. Their tableau will depict the hardships faced by farmers of the region that faces water scarcity,” a member of Swaraj India said.
Tableaux from states like Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Uttarakhand will show how fruits and vegetables are cultivated in the hilly regions.
Participants from Punjab and Haryana will showcase traditional and modern farming technology and statues of women milking cows and farmers driving bullock carts.
Each tractor will carry a tricolour and there will be folk music and patriotic songs.
A member of the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), a joint front of the protesting farmer unions, said the parade is likely to start from the five border points of Delhi — Singhu, Tikri, Ghazipur, Palwal and Shahjahanpur — where farmers have been camping since November 26.
The tractor parade will start after the official Republic Day parade concludes at Rajpath and cover a distance of more than 100 kilometers before culminating around 6 pm, he said.
A war room has been set up at each protest site to ensure effective coordination during the parade. There will 40 members, including doctors, security personnel and social media managers, in each of these rooms, the SKM member said.
Around 40 ambulances will be stationed along the route to attend to any medical emergency.
Another farmer leader said around 2,500 volunteers have been deployed to ensure that the parade remains peaceful and no untoward incident takes place. The volunteers have been given badges and identity cards.
A team of ex-servicemen participating in the protest will also keep an eye on the security situation.
Thousands of tractors are headed for Delhi from Punjab and Haryana to participate in the parade. Kulwant Singh Sandhu, general secretary of the Punjab Jamhoori Kisan Sabha, said. “Around 2.5-3 lakh tractors will take to the roads near the protest sites. The parade will be absolutely peaceful from our end,” he said.
The Delhi Police had held a series of talks with farmers trying to convince them first to cancel their parade, and later to keep it outside the Capital, even as security was tightened in view of the Republic Day.
The Delhi Police has deployed a five-layer security in and around the city. Over 40,000 police, ITBP and CRPF personnel will be deployed at Singhu, Tikri and Ghazipur borders, police said.
