Police lathi-charged migrant workers in Haryana's Yamunanagar

Scores of migrant labourers were lathicharged by police when they were trying to march towards Uttar Pradesh border. According to officials, only registered workers were allowed to cross the border and were given permission to stay at government rescue centres.

Yamunanagar(Haryana): Police in Yamunanagar town in Haryana cane-charged migrant workers on Sunday who were trying to move towards the border of Uttar Pradesh, some 20 km from there.

The labourers were seen running back to the shelter. Some of the labourers even left their luggage and cycles at the place and ran away.

Officials told reporters that they were allowing only those migrants to cross over to Uttar Pradesh who have been registered and staying at rescue centres set up by the government especially for them.

"A sudden influx of migrants from neighbouring states (Punjab and Himachal Pradesh) reached here and they were marching towards the Uttar Pradesh border. They were warned not to move towards home in UP, and when they tried to continue their journey, the police caned them," an official said.

He said the migrants who were staying in the government rescue centres were taken in batches in buses after medical screening and following social distance. After crossing Haryana, they were handed over to the Uttar Pradesh authorities for their onward journey.

Read: 'Ho sakey toh mujhe maaf kar dena', a migrant worker pens apology note after stealing cycle in Rajasthan

Uttar Pradesh has banned the entry of migrants on foot.

"We will never return here again. We have been walking from Ludhiana (in Punjab) for the past six days. Instead of helping us, the police are beating us," a labourer said.

Another labourer said they reached Yamunanagar, some 100 km from the state capital Chandigarh, by crossing agricultural fields and the Ghaggar river and rivulets as the police were not allowing their movement on the highways and link roads.

Reacting to the police action, Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala asked how much repression did the government yield on the migrants.

"The Khattar government is beating up the migrants by chasing them," Surjewala said in a tweet.

• Wish Sh. M.L.Khattar & his Govt wake up from fake claims and slumber to listen to the yearning cry for help.
  
  Will CM Khattar Ji show the courage of conviction to visit the pitiable isolation facility, take media friends along, adjudge for himself & take corective action? https://t.co/WS2gsfcIOO

  — Randeep Singh Surjewala (@rssurjewala) May 17, 2020 " class="align-text-top noRightClick twitterSection" data="

  Wish Sh. M.L.Khattar & his Govt wake up from fake claims and slumber to listen to the yearning cry for help.
  
  Will CM Khattar Ji show the courage of conviction to visit the pitiable isolation facility, take media friends along, adjudge for himself & take corective action? https://t.co/WS2gsfcIOO

  — Randeep Singh Surjewala (@rssurjewala) May 17, 2020

  ">

  Wish Sh. M.L.Khattar & his Govt wake up from fake claims and slumber to listen to the yearning cry for help.
  
  Will CM Khattar Ji show the courage of conviction to visit the pitiable isolation facility, take media friends along, adjudge for himself & take corective action? https://t.co/WS2gsfcIOO

  — Randeep Singh Surjewala (@rssurjewala) May 17, 2020

Tagging a video clip of the incident, the Congress spokesperson mocked Prime Minister Narendra Modi by saying: "The BJP came to power making promise to these people who wear 'hawai chappals' to fly in 'jahaaz' (aircraft)."

IANS report

Read: Congress accuses Bihar govt of doing politics over migrant labourers