The leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal was detained by the Punjab police ahead of his fast-unto-death | Desk
Chandigarh: Enraged over the recent detention of their leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal by the Punjab police ahead of his fast-unto-death, the farm unions have threatened that they would gherao the chief minister Bhagwant Mann’s residence in Sangrur on December 1.
It may be recalled that Dallewal, 67, was “forcibly’’ taken to Ludhiana’s Dayanand Medical College and Hospital (DMCH) ahead of his fast-unto-death from at the village Khanauri protest site on the border of Sangrur (Punjab) and Jind (Haryana) border late on Tuesday night.
However, the police held that they had taken him to DMCH as the government was concerned about Dallewal’s health and it was in this wake that his proper medical check was important – according to media reports, Dallewal has been on medication even though he has recovered from prostate cancer and that he was also down with pneumonia last month.
However, the farmer leader Sukhjit Singh Hardojhande began his fast-unto-death subsequent to Dallewal’s detention.
The farm unions – Samyukt Kisan Morcha (non political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha – which held held a meeting on Thursday condemned Dallewal’s “detention”, decided to gherao CM Mann’s residence in Sangrur on Sunday alleging that the Mann-led ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government was acting like the “B” team of the BJP-led government at the Centre.
It may also be recalled that the farmer leaders had threatened earlier this month that the farmers would resume their “Delhi Chalo’’ protest-march towards Delhi from December 6 to press the Centre to accept their various demands. They, however, clarified that the farmers would undertake a foot-march in batches and not go on their tractors.
A large number of farmers have been camping at Shambhu and Khanauri borders between Punjab and Haryana since February 13, last, after their “Delhi Chalo” tractor march was stopped by security forces at the said two points – Shambhu and Khanauri borders of the two states.
The farm leaders had also held a series of meetings with Union ministers Piyush Goyal, Nityanand Rai and Arjun Munda in Chandigarh in February but these had failed to make a headway.