New Delhi: The Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party government has turned down the Delhi Police’s request to convert nine stadiums into temporary prisons for the ongoing farmers’ protest.
Delhi Home Minister Satyender Jain said in an official statement Friday afternoon that “a non-violent protest is every Indian’s constitutional right. They can’t be jailed because of it”. The farmers have been protesting against the Narendra Modi government’s three new farm laws that were enacted earlier this year.
Jain stated that the demands of the farmers were valid, and that the Union government should address these concerns at the earliest.
दिल्ली सरकार ने किसानों की जायज मांगों को देखते हुए, दिल्ली पुलिस की स्टेडियम को जेल बनाने की अर्जी को नामंजूर कर दिया है।
केंद्र सरकार को किसानों की सभी मांगों को तुरंत मान लेना चाहिए। pic.twitter.com/XudotzIDHM
— AAP (@AamAadmiParty) November 27, 2020
The Delhi Police had, Friday morning, sought permission from the AAP government to use nine stadiums as temporary jails due to the farmers’ ‘Delhi Chalo’ march, Delhi government officials confirmed to ThePrint.
The Delhi Police used tear gas at the Singhu border in the northern part of the city to disperse marching farmers. There is a heavy deployment of security personnel, along with sand-laden trucks, and water cannons, barricading and barbed wires, to ensure farmers don’t enter Delhi, after being denied permission to protest by the police.
Also read: Police fire tear gas shells to disperse farmers at Delhi-Haryana border
‘Farmer not a criminal or terrorist’
AAP leaders, meanwhile, expressed angst against the permission sought by the police.
MLA Raghav Chadha urged the government to deny any such permission. “Farmer of our country is neither a criminal nor a terrorist,” he tweeted, adding that the “right to protest peacefully is enshrined in the Indian Constitution and hallmark of a democratic society”.
I urge the Delhi Govt to deny permission for setting up temporary prisons. The farmer of our country is neither a criminal nor a terrorist.
Right to protest peacefully is enshrined in Indian Constitution – Article 19(1) and protests are the hallmark of a free, democratic society. https://t.co/cqMvEb181r
— Raghav Chadha (@raghav_chadha) November 27, 2020
MLA and spokesperson Saurabh Bhardwaj added that it was “against humanity” to put farmers in jail, and that they had every right to protest.
केंद्र की दिल्ली पुलिस हमारे अन्नदाता हमारे किसानों को जेल में भरना चाहती है। दिल्ली पुलिस ने दिल्ली सरकार से 9 स्टेडियम को जेल बनाने की अनुमति मांगी है।
हम ऐसा कतई नहीं होने देंगे। दिल्ली सरकार से यही निवेदन है।#NoJailForFarmers pic.twitter.com/uSTfKZ7D9z
— Saurabh Bharadwaj (@Saurabh_MLAgk) November 27, 2020
Another AAP MLA, Jarnail Singh, posted a video message in Punjabi on his Twitter timeline. He urged CM Kejriwal to think of the well-being of the farmers before taking any decision.
#NoJailForFarmers pic.twitter.com/HeL1eHTNN3
— Jarnail Singh (@JarnailSinghAAP) November 27, 2020
Senior leader and MLA Atishi, who also heads the Environment Committee of the Delhi Legislative Assembly, posted a thread on Twitter expressing her views in this regard.
“Farmers from Punjab, have traveled to Delhi in biting cold to protest peacefully for their economic interests… we cannot let even a single peacefully protesting farmer to be put into jail,” she said.
Farmers from Punjab, have traveled to Delhi in biting cold to protest peacefully for their economic interests. The Delhi Police, on directions from Central govt. wants to put them in jail.#NoJailForFarmers
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— Atishi (@AtishiAAP) November 27, 2020
Also read: Barbed wire, water cannons, even BSF — Delhi barricades itself against farmers’ march
Still the Govt shamelessly call that they are “Farmer Friendly Government”
How long Fooling around is continued??????????????