Punjab: One farmer dead as clashes erupt between protestors and police in Sangrur

One farmer died after being run over by a tractor and at least five police personnel were injured in Punjab’s Sangrur as clashes erupted during a protest on Monday, PTI reported.

The clashes took place when the police tried to stop protesting farmers from blocking a national highway and a toll plaza. The farmers were seeking compensation for damaged crops caused by floods.

The demonstration took place a day ahead of a larger protest called by 16 farmer unions in Chandigarh.

The farmer who died was identified as Pritam Singh, The Hindu reported. He sustained severe injuries after being run over by a tractor and later died during treatment, Sangrur Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Surendra Lamba said.

The police released a video on social media purportedly showing Singh being run over by a tractor being driven by a protestor.

However, an unidentified protesting farmer said that the police were not allowing them to cross the toll plaza and instead detained them and vandalised their tractors, buses with batons, reported BBC Punjabi.

“The police attacked our vehicles with batons, injured six of our farmers, broke legs of two farmers,” Karnail Singh, a farmer leader from the Bharatiya Kisan Union (Ekta Azaad), told BBC Punjabi. “They also baton charged the protesting women farmers, and our fellow farmer Pritam Singh...

Read more