Farmers Protest: Haryana government to introduce law for recovery of losses due to damage to public property during protest

As thousands of farmers press on with their agitation, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Khattar on Saturday announced that his government will introduce a law for recovery of losses due to damage to public property during demonstrations, reported ANI.

During the meeting in Delhi, Khattar said, “We discussed the farmers’ protest among other issues. We will be bringing a law for recovery of damages to public property from protesters.”

When asked if he also talked about his government’s proposed law against protestors, Haryana CM said, “No, we have not talked about the laws. We have been planning to bring this law even before the farmers’ movement started. Once the Supreme Court in its decision had said that nobody had the right to vandalise public property, and we are bringing a law under which people have to pay for damage to public property.

During the meeting, the chief minister also apprised the home minister of various aspects of the ongoing farmers’ agitation, it said.

Khattar also discussed various other issues with Shah, it added.

The meeting was among others attended by Rajya Sabha MPs Lt Gen (Retd.) D.P. Vats, Dushyant Gautam and Ram Chander Jangra.

Haryana ministers J P Dalal and Anil Vij had on February 11 said that they were in favour of law for recovering damages to public and private properties from rioters and protesters in the state.

“In Uttar Pradesh, if anyone damages public or private property, it is not only a punishable offence, but recovery is made from the accused person,” Dalal had told reporters here on Thursday.

In August last year, the state assembly in neighbouring UP had passed the Uttar Pradesh Recovery of Damages to Public and Private Properties Bill, 2020.

Recently, farmers protesting against the farm laws, damaged over 1500 telecom towers belonging to Mukesh Ambani’s Jio in Punjab. While Punjab CM Capt Amarinder Singh has appealed farmers to not do so, filing cases against several, Jio has moved Punjab and Haryana High Court seeking actions against the vandalism. Reliance has issued statement that it has ‘nothing to do with the three farm laws’, while Adani state that it neither buys food grains from farmers nor decides the pricing of food grains, adding that it only develops and operates grain silos for the FCI.

Thousands of farmers have been camping at Delhi’s border points for over two months, seeking the withdrawal of agricultural laws passed in September. Most of the protestors are farmers from Punjab and Haryana, the two biggest agricultural producers.