'Cemented barricades, heavy police force': Delhi Police tightens security ahead of farmers protest at Jantar Mantar

The Delhi Police has put up concrete barricades and intensified security at the Delhi-Haryana Tikri border ahead of the farmers' call to protest at Jantar Mantar in the national capital.

The farmers are scheduled to protest in Delhi on Monday, and they have begun to arrive in the capital. Earlier, the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella body of farmers, announced the start of a 75-hour sit-in in Lakhimpur Kheri, Uttar Pradesh, on August 18 to press for their unmet demands.

Delhi police put up cemented barricades, tightens security at the Delhi-Haryana's Tikri border, ahead of call by farmers to protest at Jantar Mantar tomorrow; Farmers start arriving into the state pic.twitter.com/rGzJt5uFj8

— ANI (@ANI) August 21, 2022

SKM is a group comprising around 40 farm organisations, primarily demanding the proper implementation of minimum support price (MSP) for crops.

Earlier on July 31, farmers in Punjab had earlier blocked the railway track at Vallah in Amritsar, Bathinda, and protested at the Shambhu toll plaza in Ambala, Panchkula's Barwala, and Kaithal's Cheeka against the Union government for failing to meet their demands.

Meanwhile, farmer leader Rakesh Tikait was detained by Delhi Police when he entered the national capital to participate in the protest against unemployment on Sunday, news agency PTI reported.

According to a Delhi Police official, Tikait was stopped at Ghazipur while he was on his way to Jantar Mantar.

Tikait, the national spokesperson for the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) and a prominent face of the SKM, alleged that the Delhi police was working at the behest of the Centre.

"The Delhi Police working at the behest of the government cannot suppress the voice of the farmers. This arrest will bring a new revolution. This struggle will continue till the last breath. Won't stop, won't get tired, won't bow down," Tikait tweeted in Hindi.

सरकार के इशारे पर काम कर रही दिल्ली पुलिस किसानों की आवाज को नहीं दबा सकती। यह गिरफ्तारी एक नई क्रांति लेकर आएगी।
यह संघर्ष अंतिम सांस तक जारी रहेगा।#ना रुकेंगे #ना थकेंगे #ना झुकेंगे।@CPDelhi@ani@PTI_News pic.twitter.com/gw4WnFkZHM

— Rakesh Tikait (@RakeshTikaitBKU) August 21, 2022

The SKM and other farmers' groups are organising a 'mahapanchayat' at the Jantar Mantar on Monday and they will pass through the jurisdiction of outer district, which includes the Ghazipur border in Ghaziabad.