The Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee (KMSC) escalated its protests on Saturday, burning effigies of Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann across villages in Punjab.
The demonstrations were a direct response to the state police’s eviction of farmers from the Shambhu and Khanauri border points earlier this week, an action that has ignited widespread outrage among the farming community.
The crackdown, executed on Wednesday, saw Punjab Police detain several farmer leaders, including Sarwan Singh Pandher and Jagjit Singh Dallewal, as they returned from a meeting with Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan in Chandigarh.
The operation also involved dismantling temporary structures at the protest sites using JCB machines, clearing highways that had been occupied since February 13, 2024. Farmer groups, led by the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and KMSC, had been camped at these Punjab-Haryana border points, demanding a legal guarantee for minimum support prices (MSP) among other issues, after their march to Delhi was halted by security forces.
KMSC leader Sukhwinder Singh condemned the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government, accusing it of suppressing farmers’ rights and demanding the release of detained leaders. Around 125 protesters are reportedly held in Patiala jail, 150 in Nabha, and 40 in Sangrur. Farmer leader Guramneet Singh Mangat, after visiting jailed colleagues in Patiala, said, “They are in high spirits; the fight continues.” Singh vowed to intensify the agitation, with effigy burnings set to persist over the coming days.
Adding to the discontent, farmers reported missing belongings—trolleys, air-conditioners, refrigerators, and more—allegedly lost or stolen during the police action. KMSC’s Satnam Singh Pannu demanded compensation for these losses and the destroyed structures, which had sustained the year-long protest.
As farmers scour villages to recover their property, the clash with the AAP government deepens, spotlighting tensions over economic priorities versus agrarian rights in Punjab.