Farmers finally make it to Jantar Mantar, Tomar asks them to end stir

New Delhi: Amid tight security and under the constant vigil of a police camera, around 200 farmers on Thursday finally reached Jantar Mantar to protest against the three farm laws in tandem with the Monsoon Session of Parliament.

Interestingly, the farmers, who have been at the border for hundreds of days now had initially intended to protest at Jantar Mantar on November 27, when they were forcefully stopped and barricaded at the borders. In the afternoon, buses started moving towards Jantar Mantar from the Singhu border area. The farmers had identity cards on them and had made sure only those registered to protest on Day I boarded the buses. The police checked the buses for suspicious objects and also checked the identity cards. At around 1.30 pm to 2 pm, the farmers reached Jantar Mantar, shouting slogans and raising flags well before getting off the buses.

The buses were fully packed with people, flags and placards — with little room for social distancing.

"Today is a historical day in a historical people's movement," said Samyukt Kisan Morcha. As per farmer leaders, on the call of the Samyukt Kisan Morcha, a Kisan Sansad was organised at Jantar Mantar, near Parliament.

At this Sansad, farmer leaders spoke about repealing the three farm laws and also about the Pegasus scandal. They asked Parliamentarians to raise their voice in both Houses for the repeal of the three farm laws. BKU leader Rakesh Tikait said that these sessions will be held to show MPs how they should be deliberating on the three farm laws.

Already having decided that they would eat their own food, the farmers had arranged for langars that had been prepared and packed for them to eat at the protest.

The Delhi Police briefly stopped the press from entering the site but subsequently, let them in. At 5 pm, the farmers peacefully boarded their buses back to the Singhu border, with the police concluding that the first day of agitation was peaceful and without trouble.

However, even as the farmers decided to return on Friday, Union Agriculture minister Narendra Singh Tomar appealed to them to end their protest and come to the table for dialogue. He asserted that the three contentious farm laws had been hailed by "farmers across the country" and said the government is willing to discuss anything other than the repeal of the laws.

Asserting that the government is sensitive towards farmers, the minister said in the last seven years under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, major steps have been taken in the agriculture sector, the benefits of which are reaching cultivators across the country.With PTI inputs