Dallewal can protest peacefully, but Punjab farmers should not block highways: SC

Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan were ruling on a habeas corpus petition filed on behalf of Dallewal, who was removed from the Khanauri protest site on the Punjab-Haryana border on November 26.

“We saw that he was released and he even persuaded a fellow protester to end his protest against fasting unto death on Saturday,” the judge said, adding that the court took note of the issue raised by the farmers and checked in a pending matter.

“In a democratic system, you can engage in peaceful protests without causing inconvenience to people. They all know that Khanauri border is a lifeline for Punjab. We are not commenting on whether the protest is right or wrong,” said bench advocate Guninder Kaur Gill, appearing on behalf of Dallewal.

Justice Kant said that Dallewal could persuade the protesters to organize peaceful protests within the law without causing inconvenience to the people.

The bench said Dallewal’s petition would not be considered at this stage but he could address it later.

Hours before beginning his fast to death on November 26, Dallewal was reportedly forcibly removed from the Khanauri border and taken to a hospital in Ludhiana. He was released on Friday evening.

The petition was filed in the Supreme Court on November 29 against his alleged illegal detention by the Punjab Police.

On November 30, a day after his release, Dallewal joined the fast unto death at Khanauri border point to press for acceptance of farmers’ demands.

Farmers have been camping at Shambhu and Khanauri border points between Punjab and Haryana since February 13 after their march to Delhi was stopped by security forces.

The protesters accused the Center of not taking steps to address their demands and alleged that it had not held discussions with them on their issues since February 18.

Besides a legal guarantee on MSP, farmers are demanding implementation of Swaminathan Commission recommendations, pension for farmers and agricultural workers, waiver of agricultural debts, reinstatement of the Land Acquisition Act, 2013 and compensation to the families of farmers injured during a… previous agitation died in 2020-21.