Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Feb 6: The three hour-long “Chakka Jaam” the call for which was given by the agitating farmers unions ended with only partial success but totally peacefully on Saturday. Though several national and state highways were blocked by the agitators hampering traffic, no untoward incident was reported from any part of the country.
Besides Delhi where the police had erected multi-layer barricades to prevent the agitating farmers from entering the national capital from any side, strict security measures were also put in place in different parts of the country in view of the “chakka jaam” call. The police put under arrest at least 50 persons in Delhi and 30 in Bengaluru for blocking traffic while more reports of arrests in different national and state highways are still awaited.
At 3 P.M., the protesters sounded end of the “chakka jaam” by blowing horns of their vehicles continuously for one minute. As the protest ended, the Bharatiya Kisan Union spokesman Rakesh Tikait said the government had been given time till October 2 to take a decision on the farmers demand for the repeal of the three contentious farm laws hinting that the farmers were prepared to prolonged the agitation for the next eight months if a favourable decision from the government did not come earlier. “After this, we will do further planning. We will not hold discussions with the government under pressure,” Tikait added.
Several national and State highways were blocked as the ‘chakka jam’ started at noon, hampering traffic. Slogans were shouted against the Centre, demanding the repeal of the farm laws. As announced earlier, there was no blockade programme given inside Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand from where the farmers were on their way to various protest sites. Essential services including ambulances and school buses were also exempted from the “chakka jaam” call.
The protests were held on a call from the Samyukta Kisan Morcha, a joint front of farmer unions that had been agitating against the farm laws.
The SKM has announced that only national and State highways across the country will be jammed from 12 noon to 3 p.m. The programme will conclude with all farmers blowing the horns of their vehicles continuously for one minute at 3 p.m. to indicate the unity of farmers, according to the SKM.
In Rajasthan where the ruling Congress had extended support to the farmers’ agitation, farmers at many places including Ganganagar, Hanumangarh, Dholpur and Jhalawar in the State blocked the highways and main roads and held demonstrations, police said.
In a tweet, Congress state president Govind Singh Dotasara said the party supports the protesting farmers.
“The Rajasthan Pradesh Congress Committee supports the farmers’ unions call to block national and state highways from 12 noon to 3 pm today. All Congressmen are requested to take necessary steps to make this blockade successful and ensure it is peaceful,” Dotasara said.
Farmers’ unions had on February 1 announced a countrywide ‘chakka jam’ from 12 noon to 3 p.m. on February 6 when they would block national and State highways in protest against the Internet ban in areas near their agitation sites, harassment allegedly meted out to them by authorities, and other issues.
The police have stepped up security and made all arrangements for traffic diversion, said officials, adding adequate police personnel were deployed in Punjab and Haryana.
The internet blockade in Singhu, Ghazipur and Tikri outposts and other adjoining areas where the farmers were squatting since November 26, however, would continue till Saturday night “in the interest of maintaining public safety and averting public emergency,” the police said.
The Haryana Police also stepped up security measures in a bid to maintain law and order. Senior police officers were asked to personally supervise security and traffic arrangements at vital junctions and roads while district police chiefs were directed to ensure deployment of adequate personnel, according to an official communication issued to them.
The entry and exit gates of 10 metro stations in the National Capital were closed, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation announced.
While more than 50,000 police and paramilitary forces were deployed in the national capital in case the agitators again run berserk like on the Republic Day, more than 140 UP-PAC companies, six paramilitary companies along with senior officers were deployed at state and national highways,” said Prashant Kumar, ADG, Law and Order in Uttar Pradesh.