Exclusive: Incensed by farmers’ protests, villagers vow to clear Singhu border blockade

New Delhi: The people living in the villages nearby the Singhu border where farmers have been staging a protest against the Centre’s three farm laws have had enough and are now planning to clear the blockade by taking to the streets themselves.

People from more than 35 villages have said that they are going to travel to the Singhu border on July 21 in a bid to clear the protesters from the area.

The Delhi-Haryana Singhu border has been held hostage by protesters since November 26. More than 40 villages around the Singhu border have been affected due to this for almost 9 months. After repeatedly appealing to the administration and sometimes to the farmer leaders to open the Singhu border from one side, now the villagers have made up their mind to take the matter into their own hands.

The people of the villages adjacent to Singhu have been doing ‘Mahapanchayat’ in support of opening the Singhu border from one side.

According to Hemant Nandal, who headed the Mahapanchayat, more than two thousand people from over 35 villages will gather on the Karnal-Manesar Expressway at 9 am on July 21, after they will march towards the Singhu border.

Nandal said, “We will go unarmed. For the last 9 months our villagers are being beaten up, we have never raised our hands and will not raise them now. But it is our right to walk on the road and we will do that.”

Zee News team talked to people from the villages that have been affected.

Taking to Zee News, Ram Niwas, who lives in Sersa village, 300 meters away from the Singhu border, said that on June 12, he was returning home after withdrawing money from the bank. On his way back home, he was surrounded by 10-12 protesters and who beat him up for no reason.

According to Ravi, who lives in Sersa, his father had lost his life because of these protesters. On May 2, when Ravi was taking his father to Delhi for treatment when his father's health deteriorated, on the way the protesters stopped his car and asked him to take the other way. Ravi's father died on the way due to delay in reaching the hospital.

Rajesh, a resident of Sersa village, is a tent businessman by profession. The protesters at the Singhu border had rented tents, chairs, etc. from him. They have not paid for it since January 26. According to Rajesh, the farmer leaders have not cleared dues amounting to Rs 30 lakh yet.

After Sersa, the Zee News team reached Kundli village adjacent to Singhu. According to Mahendra Singh, who lives there, he has not been able to reach the market to sell his vegetable produce for the last 9 months, due to which he has to feed the family by selling vegetables at throwaway prices. In such a situation, according to Mahendra, if the border is not opened at the earliest, then his entire family would starve.

There were similar tales from a number of other villagers who want the border cleared.

Meanwhile, the protesting farmers have announced a march to the Parliament on July 22 to demand that the three agricultural laws be repealed. However, the announcement of the villagers’ march to the Singhu border could cause a setback for the protesters.