The Indian government has stepped up security in the capital of New Delhi after thousands of protesting farmers broke down police barricades and stormed key points in a serious escalation of months of protests against new agriculture laws of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
On Wednesday, most protesters had returned to protest sites on the outskirts of the city after calls from one of the largest agricultural unions, as protest leaders prepared to gather to decide on the next steps in their campaign. who said they would continue peacefully.
Farmers, who have camped at various border points around New Delhi for two months, were allowed to demonstrate. after completing an annual military parade on the occasion of Republic Day, an important holiday in India. But many gathered in the early hours of the day and opened barricades on the outskirts of the city, prompting police to deploy. tear gas in some areas.
Samyukt Kisan Morcha, an umbrella organization of several dozen agricultural groups leading the protests, issued a statement on Tuesday afternoon to withdraw the rest of the tractor parade in Delhi and criticize the “antisocial elements” that had been infiltrated the peaceful movement. ”Police also blamed protesters for deviating from the agreed routes and for trying to enter the heart of the capital, where parliament and other government buildings are located.
Farmers climb Red Fort during a protest in New Delhi on January 26th.
Photographer: Anindito Mukherjee / Bloomberg
The escalation of farmers ’protest adds to Modi’s challenges amid efforts to reverse a contraction in the Asian third economy due to the coronavirus pandemic. It also comes days before a parliamentary session where the government will present its annual budget detailing plans to boost economic activity in the year beginning April 1st.
Although the protests have hurt the government, this Tuesday’s scenes of unruly farmers may undermine their cause, according to Asim Ali, a researcher at the Center for Policy Research based in New Delhi.
“That was always the danger, and it seems to have gotten out of hand,” Ali said. “This is possibly what the ruling party would have liked to see.”
Television footage showed thousands of protesters clashing with police in central Delhi before reaching the iconic Red Fort, where Indian prime ministers often address the nation on the country’s independence day in the August. Peasant leaders had called on protesters to remain peaceful, warning that any violence could harm their cause.
“We also condemn and regret the undesirable and unacceptable events that have taken place today and we disassociate ourselves from those who engage in such acts,” Samyukt Kisan Morcha said in a statement. “We have always maintained that peace is our greatest strength and that any violation would harm the movement.”
Police confront farmers on Inner Ring Road in New Delhi.
Photographer: Anindito Mukherjee / Bloomberg
The Federal Ministry of Home Affairs of India suspended mobile internet services in some parts of the city where the protests were most tense. Several subway stations were also closed, although by Wednesday most stations had reopened.
Protest leaders had rejected Modi’s bids to temporarily file the three laws passed in September that reviewed how to sell agricultural goods in the country to more than 1.3 billion people, nearly half of whom depend on agriculture for to their subsistence. The government has defended the legislation, saying it would eliminate intermediaries from state-run wholesale markets, increase incomes for farmers and make India more self-sufficient.
Farmers travel by the inner ring road to central New Delhi.
Photographer: Anindito Mukherjee / Bloomberg
Farmers have continued to do so they are asking the government to repeal the legislation, which they say will harm their revenues and leave them vulnerable to big business. Although Modi’s Bharatiya Janata party has a deadlock in parliament and does not need to call a national vote until 2024, protests run the risk of hurting its appeal in state elections and could slow the momentum of others. reforms.
A farmer climbs a flagpole at Red Fort.
Photographer: Anindito Mukherjee / Bloomberg
Tractor rallies marked the first time Protestant peasants marched in the capital. They come mostly from the neighboring states of Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh. But they have also found support in other Indian cities, including the financial centers of Mumbai and Bengaluru, where protest marches have also been held.
(Refused everywhere. An earlier version of this story corrected the spelling of the cited police officer.)