Farmers march to Delhi for Mahapanchayat, stopped at Shambhu border: Why are they protesting?

India's capital New Delhi is bracing for another farmers' protest as hundreds of farmers from Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh marched towards the national capital on Tuesday (Jul 21) to attend a “Kisan Mahapanchayat.” It is being held at Kisan Ghat located in Central Delhi, on Mahatma Gandhi Road (the main Ring Road), nestled between the western banks of the Yamuna River and Raj Ghat. Several farmers' group were stopped at the Shambhu border, the entry point to Haryana, by the Police as they attempted entering the capital. The farmers have warned of wider agitation if their concerns are not addressed. Organisers had earlier said that around 550 farmers’ unions from across the country will take part in the event.

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Visuals from the Punjab-Haryana border were reminiscent of the February 2024 farmers protest against the Modi government's three farm bills. On July 21, as the farmers were denied passage, they accused both the Haryana and Punjab governments of suppressing their democratic right to assemble in Delhi. BKU Shaheed Bhagat Singh leader Tezveer Singh alleged that Haryana Police had erected barricades inside Punjab's territory and claimed the Punjab government had remained a "silent spectator" instead of resisting the move. Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee (KMSC) leader Sarwan Singh Pandher said convoys of KMSC, Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (Punjab chapter), Azaad Kisan Morcha and BKU Ekta Sangharsh have been stopped at the Shambhu border.

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Why are they protesting?

The Mahapanchayat, called under the banner of the Desh Bachao Morcha, has been organised to demand that the Centre abandon the proposed India-US trade agreement. Alleging that any deal with America would lead to deeper access into India's agriculture and dairy markets, farmers demanded that the Modi government at the Centre immediately place all documents related to the proposed India-US trade agreement in the public domain and refrain from signing any pact without holding comprehensive consultations with farmers, workers, dairy producers, small traders and other stakeholders. The farmers' groups said that any deal with the US would lead to sufferings for India's dairy sector that sustains nearly 80 million rural families. They said it would damage the rural economy and finish the livelihoods of dairy producers.