New Delhi/ Ghaziabad: Farmers agitating at the Ghazipur border since 11 am have now re-opened the Delhi-Meerut Expressway NH-58. Farmers leaders protesting at the border called the Bharat band a successful movement. The Bandh was called by Samyukt Kisan Morcha to mark the first anniversary of the enactment of the three farm laws.
All the routes on the Delhi Meerut Expressway coming from Delhi to Ghaziabad were closed by the police and traffic was diverted.
The roads leading from Chandigarh to Delhi were blocked by the farmers. A protester on the site called this bandh different from the politician's protest as emergency services were exempted.
Emergency services including hospitals, medical stores, relief and rescue work and people attending to personal emergencies are exempted from the bandh, according to the organisers. The farmers have also appealed to the general public to stay at home to avoid unnecessary trouble.
Meanwhile, a 55-year-old farmer died at the Kundli border during Bharat Band called by Samyukt Kisan Morcha. According to a farmer who was present at the site, the deceased farmer Baghelram who is a resident of Jalandhar died of a heart attack. However, police said that the real cause of the death will be revealed only after autopsy.
Police head constable Deepak stated that "police have taken the body in custody and have sent it to the civil hospital for post-mortem. The real cause of death will be revealed only after the post-mortem report."
Farmer leader Gurnam Singh stated that "our farmers are sacrificing their lives since the beginning which is the biggest loss for the movement. But we will not end the protest until the three farm laws have been revoked."
Emergency services including hospitals, medical stores, relief and rescue work and people attending to personal emergencies are exempted from the bandh, according to the organisers. The farmers have also appealed to the general public to stay at home to avoid unnecessary trouble.
Earlier, Delhi State President of Bhartiya Kisan Union, Virendra Dagar, General Secretary Daljit Singh, Patron Raj Kumar along with their supporters were taken into custody by police just after they launched the protest at Dwarka Mor. Virendra Dagar opposed the government's action stating that "the protest was peaceful although the government interrupted. This is a repressive policy of the government."
The bandh was observed between 6am to 4pm during which all government and private offices, educational and other institutions, shops, industries and commercial establishments as well as public events and functions were closed throughout the nation.
Meanwhile, more than 500 farmer organisations, 15 trade unions, political parties, six state governments and varied sections of society extended their support for the bandh. State governments of Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh, Kerala, Punjab, Jharkhand and Andhra Pradesh had also extended their support to the Bharat Bandh protest.
During the protest, Ajay Chaudhary, District President of Aam Aadmi Party's Farmers Cell, said that "the Yogi government has increased Rs 25 on sugarcane purchase is not for the benefit of the farmers but for the farmers' vote bank. On the other hand, Aam Aadmi Party has been fighting for the rights of farmers since its inception."
All India Lawyers Union staged a protest at Tis Hazari court extending their support to the farmers protesting against the three farm laws.
Bharatiya Kisan Union's national spokesperson and farmer leader Rakesh Tikait stated that the Bandh called by the Samyukt Kisan Morcha was successful. Farmers across the nation showed their anger against the farm laws and came in support of the protest today.
READ: Bharat Bandh: Delhi shuts Metro station near Tikri border; Railway cancels trains
