Kejriwal backs farmers' protest and should be allowed to enter Delhi

Arvind Kejriwal/PTI

Farmers marching from Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh in support of their demands should be allowed to enter Delhi, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Tuesday.

"Farmers should be allowed to enter Delhi. Why are they not being allowed to enter Delhi? This is wrong. We are with the farmers," the Chief Minister told the media here. His remarks come after thousands of farmers allied to the Bharatiya Kisan Union, who began marching from Haridwar in Uttarakhand on September 23, reached the Delhi border and were not allowed to enter the capital, triggering violence.

Earlier, The protest by thousands of farmers at the Uttar Pradesh-Delhi border turned violent on Tuesday as they tried to break barricades and run them over with tractors to enter the national capital, forcing police to use water cannons and tear gas shells to disperse them.

The farmers have been demanding farm loan waivers, as well as a better price for their produce and this agitation, has been going on for quite a while across the nation.

The police action led to several injuries while one of the protestors lost consciousness, said an agitating farmer. They also claimed that the policemen baton-charged to disperse the protestors. The farmers, who were marching to Delhi from Haridwar under the banner of Kisan Kranti Yatra demanding complete loan waiver and reduction in electricity tariff among other, were stopped by police at the border near Ghaziabad.

(with inputs from agencies)

Also Read: Farmers' Protest Turns Violent; Police Use Water Canons, Tear Gas

Catch up on all the latest Crime, National, International and Hatke news here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates