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SKM (non-political) and KMM had called for a shutdown of rail and road traffic from 7am to 4pm, barring even supply of milk and vegetables. Emergency services were exempted. Altercations between protesters and travellers inconvenienced by the strike were reported at some locations. A cancer patient from Gujarat and his wife were stranded at Ferozepur railway station en route Dharamshala in Himachal. The man’s wife said she didn’t find an eatery or a stall open to buy food, let alone give her husband the diet he has been medically advised to follow.
In Faridkot, protesters allegedly abused and threatened primary block education officer Jagtar Singh for keeping his office open.
Fellow activists Kaka Singh Kotda and Surjit Singh Phool said senior members of the farm lobby stayed put at Khanauri border protest site on Punjab-Haryana border as they were worried about safety of fasting farmer Jagjit Singh Dallewal.
Punjab administration made another futile attempt at convincing the farmer to receive medical assistance ahead of Tuesday’s scheduled hearing on the matter.
Retired additional DGP Jaskaran Singh, accompanied by DIG (Patiala range) Mandeep Singh Sidhu and Patiala SSP Nanak Singh, held a series of meetings with farm activists at Khanauri since Sunday. Jaskaran Singh also met Dallewal. The latter only agreed to give blood samples for testing.
In a short video after the strike ended, Dallewal thanked people of Punjab for backing the bandh. He also expressed gratitude to the volunteers by his side.
Amid calls for unity till farm unions’ demands are accepted, rival factions announced parallel kisan mahapanchayats on Jan 4 at two venues 27km apart. The events underscore the rift that some farm activists fear has weakened the movement that gained nationwide traction in 2020-21.
SKM plans to hold its mahapanchayat at Tohana in Haryana, while the other two groups, SKM (non-Political) and KMM, will gather at Khanauri. Dallewal is expected to address the second event.
