The Noida police on Tuesday detained over 160 farmers who had been protesting for various demands, including a fair Minimum Support Price (MSP). The arrests came a day after the farmers temporarily paused their march to Delhi.
Among those detained was Sukhbir Khalifa, a leader of the Bharatiya Kisan Parishad. The farmers were staging a sit-in at the Dalit Prerna Sthal in Noida after being prevented from proceeding towards the national capital.
The farmers had arrived in Noida on Monday in response to a call from the Samyukta Kisan Morcha, and had threatened to resume their march to Delhi if their demands were not addressed within seven days. According to police, the protesters were arrested around 1:30 pm under Section 170 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), which allows for arrests to prevent a cognizable offence.
Among the arrested were women and prominent farmer leaders like Khalifa and Pawan Khatana, the state president of the Bharatiya Kisan Union (Western Uttar Pradesh). The protesters were taken to Luksar jail in Noida. Meanwhile, Naresh Tikait, leader of the Bharatiya Kisan Union, condemned the arrests during a panchayat in Muzaffarnagar, pledging to continue the fight for the farmers’ “just demands.”
Earlier, the farmers had gathered near the Mahamaya flyover and set out for Delhi, demanding fair compensation for land acquired by the government, but were stopped by the police near Dalit Prerna Sthal, where they eventually sat on a dharna.
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