Farmers' march: Protesters stay put at borders, to decide on future course of action
New Delhi: After spending another night in cold, thousands of farmers continued to protest against the Centre's new agri laws on the fourth consecutive day on Sunday staying put at the Singhu and Tikri border points, with farmer leaders deliberating upon their future course of action about proposed talks with the government.
With many roads and entry points being blocked, Union Home Minister Amit Shah had appealed to the farmers to shift to the Burari ground and said the Centre was ready to hold discussions with them as soon as they move to the designated place.
A delegation of the farmers has been invited for a discussion on December 3, he said, adding that now that some of their unions have demanded that talks be held immediately, the central government is ready to do so as soon as the protesters shift to the ground in Burari.
"There is a crucial meeting today to decide the future course of action. We will stay put till then and decide accordingly. In any situation, we will not call off the protest till our demands are met," Brij Singh, one of the farmers at Singhu border said.
Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh has also termed Shah's offer to hold discussions at the earliest as the best in the interest of the farming community and the nation at large.
On Saturday, he had urged the farmers to accept the appeal and shift to the designated place for their protest.
The farmers have come prepared for a long haul, their vehicles loaded with rations, utensils, quilts, and blankets for the cold and equipped with even charging points for their phones.
After a restive Friday that saw police using teargas shells, water cannons, and multi-layer barriers to block the protesters and some farmers pelting stones and breaking barricades in their determination to push through as part of their 'Delhi Chalo' march, Saturday was quiet.
But the tension persisted with restless crowds milling around the city's edges and beyond and settling down from another night out in the cold.
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BJP's reaction to Rahul Gandhi's comments on EC fuels 'mistrust': Sharad Pawar
Pune (PTI): NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar on Tuesday claimed that BJP leaders routinely respond whenever Congress MP Rahul Gandhi questions the Election Commission's functioning, fuelling "mistrust" in the poll panel.
Responding to a question on Rahul Gandhi's criticism of the Election Commission of India over alleged "vote chori", Pawar said Gandhi and other Opposition leaders have raised key issues about the ECI's functioning.
"When Gandhi, the leader of opposition (in the Lok Sabha), raised the issue in Parliament, the institution concerned should have taken note of it. But what is happening is that when Gandhi raises questions and criticises the ECI, the ECI does not answer - it is the BJP and its leaders who respond," he told reporters here.
Instead of the Election Commission, the chief minister and other leaders are responding to such issues, the former Union minister noted.
"By doing this, they are actually contributing to the mistrust about the ECI, which is not good," he added.
Sharpening his attack on the issue of “vote chori” (vote theft), Gandhi last week accused Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar of protecting those who destroyed democracy.
To buttress his allegation, the leader of the opposition cited data from two assembly constituencies in Karnataka and Maharashtra, where he claimed voters were deleted/added in a fraudulent manner.
The Election Commission has dubbed the allegations as incorrect and baseless, and said, “No deletion of any vote can be done online by any member of the public, as misconceived by Gandhi.”
