To mark the completion of seven months of theongoing protest against the Centre’s three farm laws, thousands of farmers mainlycomprising women and youngsters, on Saturday, marched towards Chandigarh fromPunjab and Haryana to submit memorandums to the respective Governors.
Farmers from Haryana stopped well ahead ofentering Chandigarh from the Panchkula side, while those from Punjab enteredChandigarh after breaking police barricades and facing water cannons andmarched close to the Raj Bhavan of Punjab.
The Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) had announced toobserve June 26 as "Kheti bachao, loktantra bachao" (save farming,save democracy) day on the completion of seven months of the farmers' protestand the 47th anniversary of Emergency in India.
Gurnam Charuni, the leader of the Haryana unitof the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU), who was leading the protest, had appealedthat the protest would be peaceful and would submit a memorandum to thePresident of India through the Governor.
He had also announced that they would sitpeacefully at the entry point if police would not allow them to enterChandigarh.
Accordingly, they stopped ahead of enteringChandigarh and submitted the memorandum for Haryana Governor Satyadev NarayanArya through a government official.
Likewise, the police managed to convinceprotesting farmers from Punjab, who were marching from Mohali towards theGovernor's residence in Chandigarh, to hand over their memorandum to them forfurther submission to Governor V.P. Singh Badnore.
Fearing disruption of law and order situation,heavy barricading and security have been deployed in and around Chandigarh.
The protesting farmers, raising slogans againstthe central government, were carrying farm union flags and riding on tractorsand cars and many of them were walking on foot.
En route to Chandigarh, both from Punjab andHaryana, special 'langars' or community kitchens were organised for theprotesting farmers by locals.
"Our protest will continue till the threeblack farm laws are not revoked," said Gurjit Kaur, a protester who camefrom Ludhiana city in Punjab along with her friends to participate in theprotest.
She said her parents have been camping at Singhuborder of Delhi since November 26 last year.
Another protester Gurjot Kaur said thecoronavirus pandemic was not a threat to them, so they don't need masks."The real threat is from Centre's farm laws as they favour corporateinterests and will destroy our livelihoods."
As per police estimates, the number ofprotesters entered Chandigarh from Punjab could be 10,000 with sizeable numberof youngsters and women.
Similar protests were held by farm unions inboth Punjab and Haryana in all district headquarters.
The farmers are protesting against the farm lawsas they feel that these laws would pave the way for the dismantling of theminimum support price (MSP) system, leaving them at the mercy of big corporateentities.