Chandigarh police on Friday used tear gas and water cannons to disperse protesting Punjab farmers who tried to march to the Lok Bhavan here to submit a memorandum to Punjab Governor and Chandigarh Administrator Gulab Chand Kataria.
The farmers demanded a legal guarantee for Minimum Support Price (MSP), resolution of the river water dispute and the repeal of certain provisions of the Punjab Reorganisation Act.
A large number of farmers from across Punjab gathered in Mohali at the Mohali-Chandigarh border to march to the Lok Bhavan here, under the banner of the Samyukt Kissan Morcha (SKM).
When the farmers reached near the Mohali-Chandigarh border, some jumped the barricades and one young protester tried to push the barricade with a tractor.
After this, police used water cannons and tear gas to stop them at the border, said sources, adding that police detained some farmers.
Some SKM leaders, including Joginder Singh Ugrahan, claimed a few farmers were injured in the police action.
He said they wanted to march peacefully and submit a memorandum to the Punjab Governor-cum UT Administrator.
Addressing a farmers' gathering in Mohali following the police action, senior SKM leader Balbir Singh Rajewal announced that farmers will burn effigies of the Punjab Governor and the BJP across Punjab on Saturday. A meeting of farmer leaders from various union bodies will be held on May 21 to determine the next course of action, he said.
A woman protester said Chandigarh is also Punjab's capital, "but today we were stopped from even handing a memorandum to the Governor".
The farmers demanded that the river water issue be resolved according to the riparian-basin principle as Punjab is the state through which the river flows and should have the first right.
They sought repeal of Sections 78, 79 and 80 of the Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966 as these sections placed the control of Punjab's waters with the Centre.
They demanded the repeal of the Dam Safety Act and Water Amendment Act 2024, claiming these acts infringe upon the water rights of the states.
They urged the central government to cancel its decision to enter into an "anti-agriculture free trade agreement with America".
They also alleged that the Centre is trying to end Punjab's permanent membership in the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) through amendments to the board's rules.
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