Within Hours, Farm Protests Turned From Carnival To Violent Clashes

A line of tractors stood ready at dawn on Tuesday to move out of a protest site near New Delhi where thousands of farmers had been camping for the last two months and rallying against farm reforms they say will hurt them and benefit large private firms.

Within hours, the huge tractor procession that started in a carnival spirit had smashed through barricades, reached the heart of the city and turned violent.

It was an escalation in a standoff with protesters that poses a major challenge to the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, as it tries to contain the coronavirus pandemic and its economic impact.

Several hundred demonstrators breached the outer walls of Delhi’s Red Fort – one of its most recognisable landmarks – before raising flags from the ramparts and clashing with police.

Among those who reached the fort was Vikramjit Singh, who said farmers had not originally planned to storm the historic complex, a favourite tourist attraction where prime ministers deliver the annual Independence Day speech.

“Nobody had given a call to go to Red Fort,” said Singh, a farmer from Punjab’s Tarn Taran district. “It all happened suddenly.”

The events came after protest leaders held lengthy talks with police and promised a massive but peaceful rally along a pre-determined route.

Some farm leaders bemoaned the violent turn protests took, saying it undermined their cause.

“These incidents have only delayed our fight,” said farmer leader Darshan Pal.

Delhi Police Commissioner S.N. Shrivastava told reporters on Wednesday that police realised farmers may not follow the agreed route when “aggressive and militant elements” made provocative speeches the night before the tractor rally.

He added that 394 policemen were injured in clashes, leaving some in intensive care. His personnel ensured no protester had been killed, he said.

“The police has been very restrained,” he said.

Since the violence in the centre of the capital, police have reinforced their presence at major protest camps on the outskirts of the city and the Red Fort.