After Punjab, Haryana police remove barricades to clear Shambhu-Ambala road; farmers announce dharnas

Following the eviction of protesting farmers from the Shambhu border, Haryana security personnel on Thursday (March 20, 2025) morning started removing cemented barricades, which were erected to prevent the Punjab farmers from heading to Delhi.

At the Shambhu border, JCB and other machines have been deployed to remove the concrete blocks to clear the Shambhu-Ambala road, which remained closed for over a year.

Farmers protest LIVE updates

The Haryana security officials had fortified the state border with Punjab with cement blocks, iron nails and barbed wire to scuttle any attempt by the farmers from Punjab to move towards the capital as part of their ‘Delhi Chalo’ programme.

Punjab Police also resumed its operation to dismantle the remaining temporary structures on the Punjab side of the Shambhu border on Thursday to clear the road.

Farmers Union announces dharna

Meanwhile, the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha on Thursday (March 20, 2025) announced to hold dharnas outside the offices of deputy commissioners in protest against the Punjab Police crackdown.

Both the bodies, which spearheaded the farmers’ stir at Shambhu and Khanauri border points, slammed the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Punjab for evicting the protesters and detaining farmer leaders on Wednesday.

Punjab Police detain farmers leaders

Punjab Police detained several farmer leaders, including Sarwan Singh Pandher and Jagjit Singh Dallewal, in Mohali on Wednesday as they were returning after a meeting with a central delegation led by Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan in Chandigarh.

Police also evicted the agitating farmers from the Shambhu and Khanauri protest sites, which were blocked for more than a year, and dismantled the temporary structures and stages put up there using JCB machines.

Talks with Government

At the meeting in Chandigarh, the seventh round of talks between the two sides, the central delegation was also represented by Consumer Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi and Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal.

The meeting discussed the various demands of the farmers, especially a law guaranteeing minimum support price (MSP) for crops.

As the departing farmers entered Mohali after the meeting, they were met with heavy barricading.

Farmers leaders condemn police action

Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee (KMSC) leader Satnam Singh Pannu on Thursday condemned the police action, and accused the Punjab government of being “hand-in-glove” with the Centre in launching the crackdown on the protesting farmers.

“It was the murder of democratic rights. The farmers wanted to go to Delhi but the Haryana government barricaded the roads at the Centre’s behest,” Pannu alleged.

Thousands of policemen were deployed to forcibly remove the dharna from Shambhu and Khanauri border points, he said.

“The governments led by Bhagwant Mann and the BJP at the Centre will face the consequences,” Pannu warned.

He also said the two farmer bodies — Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha — will hold dharnas against the police action outside the offices of the deputy commissioners in Punjab and other states.

“Thousands of farmers, including women, will take part in the dharna. We will intensify our agitation in support of our demands,” Pannu said.

Condemning the police action against the farmers, KMSC leader Sukhwinder Singh said, “Farmers did not block the roads. The Centre did. Even today we want to go to Delhi as our demands concern the Centre.” “Punjab Chief Minister Mann showed his ‘loyalty’ to the BJP government at the Centre by initiating the police action,” he alleged.

Jagjit Singh Dallewal taken to hospital

Meanwhile, farmer leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal, who is on an indefinite fast since November 26 last year, was taken to the Punjab Institute of Medical Sciences in Jalandhar. Later, he was taken to some other place.

On Wednesday, farmer leader Guramneet Singh Mangat said Abhimanyu Kohar, Kaka Singh Kotra and Manjit Singh Rai were among the detainees alongside Pandher and Dallewal.

Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema justified the eviction of farmers, saying industries and businesses have been hit hard due to the prolonged closure of the two highways, which he called “the lifelines of the state”.

“The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is committed towards generating employment for the youth. And they will get jobs only if the trade and industry functions smoothly,” Cheema said on Wednesday.

“Trade has been suffering. This action has been taken after considering all the situations. We have been telling the farmer leaders that your fight is with the Centre, and we are with you. But you are causing heavy loss to Punjab by closing the border,” the finance minister added.

He also said the Punjab government remains committed to supporting the farmers in their legitimate demands, claiming that the AAP ministers are actively working to present the farmers’ concerns before the Centre.

“We urge the farmer leaders to focus their struggle against the Centre while allowing Punjab to progress. We stand with the farmers today, as we always have, and will continue to fight alongside them,” Cheema said.

The protesting farmers — led by the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha — were camping at the Shambhu (Shambhu-Ambala) and Khanauri (Sangrur-Jind) border points between Punjab and Haryana since February 13 last year, when their march to Delhi was thwarted by security forces.