Police fires tear gas on protesting farmers in Delhi

A Clash between protesting farmers and the police forces erupted on the borders of New Delhi on Tuesday.

The security forces shot tear gas at protesting farmers attempting to enter the capital.

New Delhi police banned large gatherings in the city of over 33 million people and installed barricades to block farmers from entering Delhi for security reasons.

Farmers from the capital’s neighbouring states, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab, began marching towards the city on Tuesday, demanding various measures to ensure the financial viability of farming.

One of the farmers’ key demands was a legal guarantee of a minimum support price (MSP) for all crops.

The protests, marching under the name “Chalo Delhi,” were led by a faction of the Sanyukt Kisa Morcha (SKM), a coalition of farmers’ unions, which also led to the 2020 farmers’ protests.

In 2020, the protest against the legislation liberalising the agricultural market in India, the farmers camped at the Delhi border for almost a year.

The violent protest in 2020 claimed more than 600 lives.

However, following the protests, the Modi administration recalled the legislation to reform agriculture, a bitter defeat for his government.