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Nitin Jain
Tribune News Service
Ambala, November 27
Punjab farmers again broke the police naka at Shambhu to enter Haryana on Friday. Braving water cannons and tear gas shells, thousands passed through Ambala to proceed to the national capital on the second day of their ‘Delhi Chalo’ march.
Some protesters pelted police personnel with stones and a couple of them brandished swords. Some cops and farmers were injured in the melee and taken to hospital. After failing to stop the protesters, the police removed barricades at Shambhu and Saddopur in the evening to allow free movement of traffic.
Borders opened
After farmers were allowed entry into Delhi, all inter-state borders in Ambala were opened and free movement of traffic restored. Our aim was not to hurt farmers. We tried to hold them back for as long as we could.
Thousands of farmers from Punjab reached the Shambhu border around 11 am. The police, supported by a company of the Rapid Action Force, put up a naka with chained iron barricades, heavy concrete boulders and earth-laden trailers and dumper placers.
Adamant peasants had a face-off with the police for over two hours, during which they braved water cannons and tear gas shells.
The police, who had failed to prevent farmers’ entry on Thursday, seemed better prepared on Friday. Even as the protesters removed and threw some iron barricades into the Ghaggar, they were not able to break through.
Undeterred, farmers took a U-turn from the Patiala-Ambala highway, giving the impression that they were moving back. No sooner did the cops on duty heave a sigh of relief and move back from their positions, the protesters approached from the wrong side on the highway and entered Haryana.
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