Punjab Government Informs Supreme Court: Farmers at Border Ready for Discussions with Court-Appointed Panel
Click to start listening
New Delhi, Jan 6 (NationPress) On Monday, the Punjab government informed the Supreme Court that the farmers protesting at the Punjab-Haryana border have consented to engage in discussions with the panel designated by the court.
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing the Punjab government, conveyed to a bench led by Justice Surya Kant that a meeting was scheduled for 3 p.m. today, where a potential breakthrough could occur.
The Justice Kant-led bench then postponed the hearing on a contempt petition regarding actions against the Chief Secretary of Punjab for the failure to hospitalize farmer leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal, who is currently on a hunger strike.
The 70-year-old, who is battling cancer, has been fasting at Khanauri, the border point between Punjab and Haryana, since November 26 to advocate for their longstanding demands, which include a legal assurance for Minimum Support Price (MSP) for crops, loan forgiveness, and reforms aimed at enhancing conditions within the agricultural sector.
In September of the previous year, the Supreme Court mandated the establishment of a committee to amicably address the grievances of the farmers protesting at the Punjab-Haryana border. It proposed that the panel, chaired by Justice Nawab Singh, a former judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, engage in negotiations with the farmers to facilitate the removal of their tractors and trolleys from the National Highway for the convenience of the public.
Additionally, the apex court had allowed farmers to relocate their peaceful protests to a different site.
The panel included Justice Nawab Singh, former Haryana DGP B.S. Sandhu, agricultural expert Devender Sharma, Prof Ranjit Singh Ghuman, agricultural economist Dr. Sukhpal Singh, and Prof Baldev Raj Kamboj as a special invitee.
During the previous session, the Supreme Court clarified that it had never instructed the end of Dallewal's hunger strike but was solely focused on his health.
"There seems to be a deliberate attempt in the media where state government officials (of Punjab) are trying to convey that there is pressure from this court on Mr. Dallewal to cease his fast. Our orders were not to terminate his fast. We only emphasized the importance of his health being monitored while he continues his peaceful protest, even if hospitalized," it expressed to Punjab’s Advocate General Gurminder Singh.
The Justice Kant-led bench asserted that transferring Dallewal to the hospital should not imply he will cease his fast; instead, medical services should ensure his safety.
It warned that if the Punjab government continues to neglect the implementation of its order regarding Dallewal's hospitalization, the apex court would seek the intervention of the Centre.
"It is entirely the responsibility of the State of Punjab to ensure the stable health condition of Mr. Jagjit Singh Dallewal. If he requires hospitalization, the authorities must guarantee it. The state government will decide whether Dallewal can be transferred to a temporary hospital (reportedly set up 700 meters from the site) or to a better-equipped hospital," the Supreme Court ordered on December 20.
