NEW DELHI: The national capital’s border points were under heavy police deployment on Tuesday with concrete barriers and multilayered barricades put in place as farmers agitating against the Centre’s new agri laws blocked the Delhi-Noida border near Chilla.
Two more border points connecting the national capital with Gurgaon and Jhajjar-Bahadurgarh were closed as precautionary measures, leading to heavy traffic jams in several parts of the city. With this, in total five border points, including Singhu and Tikri, have been closed due to the protest.
The protest by farmers at the Delhi border points entered the sixth day and is set to continue as the critical talks between three Union ministers and farmer groups ended in a stalemate on Tuesday after they rejected the government’s suggestion of a new committee to look into issues raised by agitating farmers. The two sides, however, decided to meet again on Thursday.
On Tuesday afternoon, hundreds of farmers gathered at the Noida and Delhi border on Tuesday, stopping traffic movement on a key route connecting Uttar Pradesh with the national capital, officials said. Later, two more border points connecting the national capital with Gurgaon and Jhajjar-Bahadurgarh were also closed as precautionary measures. On Sunday, the protesting farmers had threatened to block five border entry points of the national capital.
Azad, Pappu meet farmers
Leaders of several parties and organisations made a beeline at UP gate in Ghazipur at the Delhi-Ghaziabad border to express their solidarity with the protesting farmers of Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday. Bhim Army chief Chandrashekar Azad joined the protesting farmers along with hundreds of his supporters and demanded that the new farms laws be withdrawn immediately.
Azad claimed that the centre decided to hold talks with farmers when his organisation decided to join the stir as it had realised the ‘Dalit power’ which had come out in support of the Kisans. Jan Adhikar Party cheif Pappu Yadav also met the farmers.
Hundreds of western UP farmers, led by Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader Rakesh Tikait, have been staying put at the UP Gate border area as part of ‘Delhi Chalo’ protest against the farm laws since Saturday.