A group of people, claiming to be locals, threw stones and vandalised tents of protesting farmers at the Delhi-Haryana border in Singhu on Friday, 29 January.
This has been the center of farmers' protests since November. One police official has been injured in the violence, reported NDTV.
The Delhi Police reportedly used baton charge and tear gas shells to control the situation, as locals clashed with the protesting farmers.
Tikri and the Delhi-Uttar Pradesh border at Ghazipur have also been placed under a heavy blanket of security.
‘Goons’ Attacked Farmers, Not Locals: Yogendra Yadav
Farmer leader Yogendra Yadav told The Quint that according to him, “BJP and RSS-sent goons” attacked the farmers at Singhu border, just like they had during the JNU and anti-CAA protests.
“This is not a clash between ‘locals’ and farmers, goons have attacked the farmers and they were given protection by the police,” he added.
“They walked inside 2 kilometers of restricted area... they took vehicles inside prohibited areas. They then started pelting stones. The question is what is the Delhi Police doing?” Yadav asks.
He also stated that farmers who had hoisted lakhs of Tricolour flags on Delhi roads, won’t tolerate being called ‘anti-national.’ He condemned the violence at the Red Fort, asserting that the union was not behind it.
A Timeline of Events At The Singhu Border
Aam Aadmi Party leaders Raghav Chadha and Satyendar Jain reached the Singhu border with water tankers for the protesting farmers and were reportedly stopped by the Delhi Police from going towards the site, on ‘verbal orders.’
The tension increased at the site, when a group claiming to be ‘locals’ demanded the protesters to leave the site immediately. As a result, clashes broke out with stone pelting and increased police presence.
These “locals” also chanted ‘goli maaro’ slogans against the protesting farmers.
The Rapid Action Force was deployed, and the protesters allege that tear gas shells were used by the police. While the clashes have been contained, a visible tension remains at the site with policemen in riot-gear manning the site, and the protesters fearing a ‘brutal crackdown.’
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