The Rail Roko call by the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha evoked good response in Punjab as farmers blocked several railway tracks disrupting rail traffic on several locations in the state.
Acting on the call farmers had blocked railway tracks on around 50 locations in all 23 districts forcing the Railways Authorities to cancel or divert nearly 30 trains of Ambala division bound to Punjab and nearby states. The farmer leaders had given the call for Rail Roko for three hours from 12pm to 3pm, after the Haryana police did not allow them to enter Haryana after repeated attempts. In Amritsar the farmers had blocked trains at six locations including Devidaspura, Beas, Pandher Kalan, Kathu Nangal, Ramdas, Jahangir and Jhande. Also the response was good in Gurdaspur, Hoshiarpur, Ferozpur, Tarn Taran and Kapurthala.
Later in a video message farmer leader Sarvan Singh Pandher thanked the farmers from the state for making the Rail Roko successful.
He said that the unity is the only weapon to win this battle for the future of coming generations of the farmers. Reacting over the media reports about differences between the farmer leaders, Pandher said that some media outlets are claiming that the two farmer unions as separate entities, which is completely false and a baseless. “Farmers are united and fighting this battle together,” he asserted. Pandher accused the opposition of failing to raise farmers’ issues in Parliament, leading to their problems being ignored. He also questioned former Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aamdi Party Chief Arvind Kejriwal to tell what he has done for the farmers.
However, the train passengers had to face difficulties to reach their destinations in lack of passenger trains as thousands of passengers remained stranded at the railway stations for several hours.
Meanwhile, farmer Ranjit Singh, who had earlier consumed poison at Shambhu border during the ongoing farmers’ protest, had reportedly died on Wednesday. The protesting farmers have demanded Rs 25 lakh in financial aid for the deceased farmer’s family, a complete waiver of his debts, and a government job for one of his family members.
Farmers give call for Punjab Bandh
After the Rail Roko now the farmer leaders associated with the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha and Samyukt Kisan Morcha (non-political) gave a call for ‘Punjab Bandh’ on December 30 to build pressure on the government for the pending demands including guaranteed MSP.
“The farmer leaders have given a call for a Punjab Bandh for December 30, against the atrocities of the Central government, while emergency services will remain operational,” reads a statement released by the farmer leaders.
