Punjab: Jagjit Singh Dallewal Discharged From Hospital Amid Farmers’ Protests, Resumes Fast-Unto-Death

Chandigarh: Farm leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal was discharged from Dayanand Medical College and Hospital (DMCH), Ludhiana late Friday night amid mounting anger and protest of the farmers against his detention in the wee hours of Tuesday - hours before he was to begun his fast-unto-death at Khanauri border to press for farmers demands including minimum support price for their crops.

However, police maintained that Dallewal was not detained but was taken to DMCH in Ludhiana from his medical tests as he has been unwell. The police held that the government was concerned about Dallewal’s health and it was in this wake that his proper medical check was important; according to media reports, Dallewal has been on medication even though he has recovered from prostate cancer and that he was also down with pneumonia last month.

Meanwhile, according to media reports, Dallewal reached the Khanauri border protest site later after he was discharged from the DMCH and started his fast-unto-death later in the evening.

The leaders of the Sanyukt Kisan Morcha (non-political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha leaders including Sarwan Singh Pandher said that the farmers would gherao chief minister Bhagwant Mann’s residence in Sangrur on December and would also resume their ``Delhi march’’ on December 6. Nonetheless, there were reports that the farmers might cancel their December 1 CM residence gherao protest.

However, unlike their February "Delhi march’’ when the farmers had tried to move towards Delhi on their tractor trolleys but were stopped by at Shambhu and Khanauri borders by security forces, they would now move undertake a foot-march towards Delhi and in batches, he held.

It may be recalled that a large number of farmers have been camping at Shambhu and Khanauri borders between Punjab and Haryana since February 13, last, after their "Delhi Chalo’’ tractor march was stopped by security forces at the said two points – Shambhu and Khanauri borders of the two states.

Later, the farm leaders had also held a series of meetings with Union ministers Piyush Goyal, Nityanand Rai and Arjun Munda in Chandigarh in February but these had failed to make a headway.