Chandigarh: A team deputed by the Punjab government on Sunday made attempts to persuade fasting farmer leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal to take medical aid, but he declined and feared that force may be used to evict him from the protest site.
With 70-year-old Dallewal's indefinite hunger strike entering its 34th day on Sunday, farmer leaders at Khanauri said they have been following the Gandhian way to continue their protest and it is up to the government to decide whether it wants to use force to evict their senior leader.
The developments came amid the Supreme Court's strong criticism of the Punjab government for not shifting Dallewal to a hospital. A high-level team of the Punjab government comprising Deputy Inspector General of Police Mandeep Singh Sidhu and retired Additional DGP Jaskaran Singh met Dallewal and farmer leaders at the Khanauri border site on Sunday.
Later, farmer leaders said Dallewal had refused to take any medical aid. Speaking to reporters late evening after two rounds of talks with Dallewal and farmer leaders, Jaskaran Singh said there are Supreme Court and the state government's directions that Dallewal should take medical aid.
"We discussed all points with them," Jaskaran Singh said. He said that Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann was being apprised of the situation. After the meeting, Dallewal came out with a short video message late Sunday evening.
"The information which we are getting is that very heavy force is being sent here... Punjab government at the behest of the Centre...they all are coming...I appeal to you that it is your fight. We have said this many times that our job is to fight battle, to win is your job," he said appealing to people to come in numbers to Khanauri.
Dallewal also said, "When we started this agitation, we believed we can protest in Gandhian way and we adopted the Satyagraha method...but this government (Centre) rather than listening to our voice is trying to crush our agitation".
The farmers have been protesting at the Punjab-Haryana border to press the Centre for several demands, including a legal guarantee to a minimum support price (MSP) for crops. Earlier too, a high-level team of Punjab government officials met Dallewal requesting him to accept medical treatment even if he wished to continue with his fast.
Dallewal has so far refused medical treatment. On Sunday, Farmer leader Abhimanyu Kohar at the Khanauri border said, "We are continuing our agitation by adopting Gandhian principles despite enduring so much due to the government's oppression."
"We are following these principles. Now, it is up to the government and constitutional bodies to decide whether they want to use force to evict Dallewal ji," Kohar said.
He further said the farmers wanted to make it clear that whatever situation arises the responsibility will lie with the Centre and the constitutional bodies. Notably, farmers have thrown a multi-layer inner security ring where Dallewal is sitting on an indefinite fast.
Samyukt Kisan Morcha (Non-political) leader Kaka Singh Kotra said Dallewal has made it clear that he is ready to sacrifice his life for the sake of farmers in the country.
SKM (Non-political) and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha have also called for a Punjab bandh on Monday and claimed their strike call has received strong support from transporters, employees, traders, and other sections of society including religious bodies.
Meanwhile, farmer leader Sarwan Singh Pandher said though there will be a complete bandh on Monday, emergency services will remain operational. He added that the Centre is not prepared to listen to the demands of farmers.
"The bandh will be observed from 7 am to 4 pm. However, emergency services will remain operational. Besides, anyone travelling to the airport to catch a flight or anyone going to attend a job interview, or anyone having a marriage function... all these things have been kept out of our bandh call," he said.
On Saturday, while admonishing the Punjab government, the Supreme Court also suggested the possibility that Dallewal may not have been allowed to be taken to a hospital by other farmer leaders. Dallewal had earlier said he would not break his fast until the government agreed to the farmers' demands.
The apex court gave the Punjab government time until December 31 to persuade Dallewal to shift to a hospital, granting the state the liberty to seek logistical support from the Centre, if necessary.
In response, the Punjab government said in the court that it is facing significant resistance from the protesting farmers, who have encircled Dallewal and are preventing him from being taken to a hospital. The apex court also termed the conduct of some farmer leaders accompanying Dallewal as surprising and questionable.
The state government had formed a team of doctors to monitor Dallewal's health round-the-clock. Farmers, under the banner of SKM (Non-Political) and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha, have been camping at the Shambhu and Khanauri border points between Punjab and Haryana since February 13, after their march to Delhi was stopped by security forces.
A "jatha" (group) of 101 farmers attempted to march to Delhi on foot three times between December 6 and 14 but were stopped by security personnel from Haryana. In addition to a legal guarantee for MSP, the farmer's demands include a debt waiver, pensions for farmers and farm labourers, no hike in electricity tariffs, withdrawal of police cases, and "justice" for the victims of the 2021 Lakhimpur Kheri violence.
