The district police on Saturday lathi-charged some agitated farmer protesters who tried to break the barricades by riding tractors at the Chandimandir toll plaza here. The incident took place when at around 2.30 pm the protesters broke barricades on their tractors and started moving towards Panchkula. About half a dozen police personnel were injured in the incident. Their condition is said to be stable.
Farmers had called for protests near the residences of MPs, MLAs and ministers across the state against the government’s decision not to procure paddy early. The central and state governments have now decided to procure paddy from Haryana and Punjab from October 3.
The scuffle caused inconvenience to commuters, as traffic on the Kalka-Shimla highway and from Majri Chowk and Yamunanagar was diverted. The protesters also blocked other roads and parked trucks laden with paddy in the middle of the road.
Panchkula Police said in a press statement that only mild force was used to avoid human casualties and damage to public property. Senior farmer leader Gurnam Singh Chaduni, who reached Chandimandir toll plaza this evening, criticized the police and demanded appropriate action against those involved in the lathi charge. Police said the video footage of the incident is being investigated and promised speedy legal action. Meanwhile, the videos have also gone viral.
In the footage, protesters, mostly youth, can be seen riding on two tractors without stopping at barricades. They can also be seen hitting barricades back and forth with tractors and lathi-charging the police to stop them. The protesters managed to escape from the spot. A DDR was registered at Chandimandir police station. Chandimandir (Station House Officer) SHO, Inspector Arvind Kumar, was not available for comment.
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