Barricading at various locations in Mansa, Bathinda and Faridkot districts; BKU (Ekta-Ugrahan) leader Jhanda Singh Jethuke manages to give Punjab Police the slip.
Punjab Police stepped up security along highways and roads in Malwa’s Mansa, Bathinda and Faridkot districts since early on Wednesday to prevent farm union activists from marching towards Chandigarh to hold a dharna against the state government.
Officials said that farm union leaders are being taken into preventive custody to maintain law and order.
The agitators have not been able to disrupt vehicular movement so far.
Sources said that the police were searching vehicles to identify members of Samyukt Kisan Morcha and stop them from proceeding towards the state capital.
Deputy inspector general (DIG), Bathinda range, Harjeet Singh said that barricading has been done at various locations in both Mansa and Bathinda districts.
“On Tuesday night, we tried to take Bhartiya Kisan Union (Ekta-Ugrahan) leader Jhanda Singh Jethuke into preventive custody but he managed to flee. Teams are trying to locate him,” the DIG said.
Faridkot senior superintendent of police Pragya Singh said field teams have been instructed to ensure that no one tries to disrupt the movement of vehicles.
“Special teams have been deployed in different places to keep an eye on the protesters. People are being detained to maintain peace and there is no input to state that the protesting farmer union activists tried to hamper traffic,” she said.