'Dilli Chalo': Punjab CM welcomes Centre's move to let farmers enter Delhi

Farmers groups continued their march towards Delhi while protesting and raising slogans near the border areas of the national capital.

Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Friday welcomed the Centre's decision to allow the agitating farmers to enter the national capital.

Punjab Chief Minister's response comes after the Delhi Police gave permission to the farmers to peacefully protest against farm laws at Nirankari Samagam Ground in Burari.

"After discussion with farmer leaders, Delhi Police has allowed farmers to protest peacefully at Nirankari Samagam Ground in Burari. We appeal to them to maintain peace in order to avoid any inconvenience to others," said Delhi Police Public relations officer (PRO) Eish Singhal.

Appreciating the decision to allow the farmers in Delhi, Amarinder Singh said:" Though the central government has allowed the farmers to enter the national capital to exercise their democratic right to protest, the Haryana government is engaged in a confrontationist approach against the farmers moving towards Delhi."

In a tweet, Singh, however, expressed shock at the methods used by the Khattar government in their bid to stop the farmers.

"Impressed by remarkable restraint shown by farmers in face of @mlkhattar government's and Haryana police's brutality. Their exemplary behaviour shows that farmers are not interested in confrontation, they only want to be heard, which is their constitutional right," the Punjab Chief Minister tweeted.

The Punjab Chief Minister also said that farmers did not inflict even an "iota of damage" during the protests in the past three months.

"The farmers did not inflict even an iota of damage to any public property over the past three months of their protest, and here is a state government that is brazenly and shamelessly digging up roads made of public money," he claimed.

Captain Amarinder also reiterated his appeal to the Central government to initiate immediate talks to address farmers' concerns on the farm laws and resolve the "simmering issue."

This comes as farmers groups, including women, continued their march towards Delhi while protesting and raising slogans near the border areas of the national capital.

Scores of farmers at the Tikri border near the Delhi-Bahadurgarh highway and the Singhu border were seen agitating amid heavy security deployment.While the government said the three laws will do away with middlemen, enabling farmers to sell their produce in the commercial markets, protestors fear that this could lead to the government not buying produce at guaranteed prices, thereby disrupting their timely payments.Farmers are protesting against the three laws -- the Farmers Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Service Act, 2020, and The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.