Farmers resume protest against agri laws, hold Kisan Sansad at Jantar Mantar
Around 200 farmers from Singhu border arrived in buses and SUVs at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar on Thursday (July 22) to resume their protests against the Centre’s farm laws.
The farmers who have been camping at the borders of the national capital near Singhu, Tikri and Ghazipur since November last year, now plan to hold staggered protests in the form of Kisan Sansads during all the working days of the winter session of Parliament.
Farmers gather to board the buses at Singhu (Delhi-Haryana) border, ahead of protest against three farm laws at Jantar Mantar in Delhi pic.twitter.com/S4JFHt6lv4
— ANI (@ANI) July 22, 2021
A Kisan Sansad is supposed to be the farmers’ mock up version of a Parliament session, which will have a speaker, a deputy speaker and tea breaks among other things.
“We will show how to hold Parliament,” NDTV quoted farmers’ leader Yogendra Yadav as saying.
The Delhi government and police have granted the farmers permission to hold the Kisan Sansads between 11 am and 5 pm from Thursday till August 9. While disaster management rules were tweaked to accommodate the protests’ demands, the farmers have been given the caveat to follow COVID-19 protocols during the protest and limit the number of participants to 206.
Reports say, farmers groups on Thursday morning wanted to travel via the GT Karnal Road from Singhu, but were stopped by police who frisked and counted them before allowing them to the protest venue.
MPs from the Congress including Rahul Gandhi and parties like the Shiromani Akali Dal, RJD, DMK and the Left also staged a protest on House premises in solidarity with the farmers’ agitation.
वे असत्य, अन्याय, अहंकार पर अड़े हैं,
हम सत्याग्रही, निर्भय, एकजुट यहाँ खड़े हैं।जय किसान!#FarmersParliament pic.twitter.com/y9xGdvgT3T
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) July 22, 2021
Security was beefed up at Singhu border and in and around Jantar Mantar, a few metres away from the Parliament complex, ahead of the arrival of the farmers.
Police have asked Delhi Metro authorities to step up vigil at six stations and close them if need be.
This is the first time since the tractor rally of January 26 that turned violent, that the farmers have been given permission to hold protests inside the city.
