The agitating farmers have offered a contact for a ‘Bharat Bandh’ right now (Tuesday) for which they have elicited help from across the political spectrum – the sole exception being the TMC — as effectively as trade bodies.
However, ‘Bharat Bandh’ is a misnomer as the effect of the blockade is probably to be restricted to the northern states. Elsewhere, it is anticipated to be sporadic and minimal, extra symbolic than intimidating.
But that does not detract from the significance of a nascent uprising which could create into a groundswell later. Also, the optics of it all, in India and abroad, could prove a important embarrassment for a government which has ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas’ as its leitmotif.
The farmers, in all fairness, have not permitted the agitation to veer out of handle and descend into lawlessness. Announcing their plans, the leaders stated that they will occupy toll plazas at the borders of Delhi in between 11 am to 3 pm. While promising that emergency services will be permitted, the leaders have asked farmers not to coax shopkeepers and desist from attempting to enforce the clamp down by force.
“Our bandh is different from that of political parties. It is a four-hour symbolic bandh for an ideological cause. We want that there should be no untoward problem for the aam aadmi. We appeal to them not to travel during this period,” farmer leader Rakesh Tikait stated.
The Haryana and Delhi Police have nonetheless issued separate advisories on the targeted traffic scenario, specially on roads that are to be avoided in Haryana and Delhi. The police are also ready for any type of disruptions at the different toll plazas.
The government will be delighted if the protests are restricted to the border. They have created positive of that, with as several as 90 businesses of paramilitary troops, like 27 from the riot police, getting deployed to deal with the agitation.
What has the government on tenterhooks is that an try may well be created to ‘gherao’ the PMO or stage a march to Jantar Mantar. Intelligence agencies claim that the agitation has been “infiltrated” by cadres of Popular Front of India and radical Left outfits which may attempt to usurp the movement by marching towards central Delhi and clashing with the police at barricades, reports News 18.
Intelligence inputs also point to a probable ‘surprise’ that agitators may throw up. “They are planning to do something spectacular. We saw their tractor burning stunt at India Gate earlier. Plans are afoot to execute something similar,” an official in the know told News18.
Meanwhile, farmers continued to protest at the Delhi-Haryana border for the 12th day on Monday, but there was no blockade as movement of vegetables, meals things and milk was permitted in the national capital.
“Why should we stop supplies in the capital? They are all farmers and we do not want to harm their interests,” a leader asserted.
He pointed out that their agitation was peaceful, but it is the police force that was attempting to provoke them. Farmers from UP who wanted to join these from Punjab and Haryana had been stopped by the UP police, it was pointed out.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was at the border to oversee the arrangements created by his government for meals and shelter. Kejriwal told the protestors that he was just a ‘sewadar.’
The gurdwaras in the capital have also geared up to guarantee supplies to the protesting farmers even though several medical doctors have volunteered to offer wellness services at the protest web sites.
The farmer leaders stated they are searching forward to interacting with the government once more on Wednesday following the bandh, hoping that the effect may well rouse the government and force it to concede their demands.
The Congress and all opposition parties, barring TMC, have extended their help to the ‘Bandh’ but the farmers have steered clear of political cadres. They do not want to give an excuse to the government to dub the ongoing agitation as ‘politically motivated’.