The standoff at the Shambhu border near Ambala between protesting farmers and security forces escalated into the fourth day, with authorities deploying tear gas to quell the demonstrators attempting to dismantle the barricades on February 16, 2024. Amid the clashes, there were reports of stone-pelting, petrol bombs, chilli smoke assaults, and attempts by protesters to challenge security forces with tractors.
Ambala Superintendent of Police Jashandeep Singh Randhawa detailed the unrest, while the Haryana Police provided CCTV evidence of provocations by protesters, including the encouragement of a woman to confront the barricades. Amidst allegations, two criminal cases were filed against unnamed farmers.
The turbulence of the protests was punctuated by the death of a 63-year-old protesting farmer from a cardiac arrest. Leaders of the farmers’ movement, including SKM’s Jagjit Singh Dallewal and BKU’s Gurnam Singh Charuni, showed solidarity with the deceased, urging attendance to his upcoming last rites and emphasizing discipline and non-violence in future protests.
Further negotiations between union ministers and farmer leaders are poised for February 18, following unfruitful talks held earlier in the month. Union ministers Arjun Munda, Piyush Goyal, and Nityanand Rai had lengthy discussions with Punjab officials, voicing optimism for a resolution.
The farmers persist in demanding a legal guarantee for the Minimum Support Price (MSP), adherence to the Swaminathan Commission’s recommendations, a pension scheme, a farm debt waiver, justice for violence victims, a revision of the Land Acquisition Act, 2013, and compensation for affected families from past protests.
As the farmers’ protest extends, urban supply chains face potential disruptions, with grim implications for the transport sector and essential services such as milk and vegetable deliveries, due to the nationwide Gramin Bharat Bandh involving various trade unions.