NE NEWS SERVICE
NEW DELHI, JAN 26
The government on Tuesday ordered the suspension of internet services in parts of Delhi-NCR as a tractor parade by protesting farmers turned violent at several locations in the national capital, officials said.
The internet shutdown will be effective till midnight Tuesday in Delhi’s Singhu, Ghazipur, Tikri, Mukarba Chowk, Nangloi, and their adjoining areas.
An order issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs said the decision has been taken in exercise of the powers conferred by section 7 of the Indian Telegraph Act 1855.
It said the suspension of internet services was necessary and expedient in the interest of maintaining public safety and averting public emergency.
The order will be in force from noon to 23:59 hours on January 26, the MHA said.
People residing close to farmers’ protest sites said they are getting SMSes informing them about the suspension of internet services in their area.
“As per the government instructions, the Internet services have been temporarily stopped in your area because of which you are not able to use these services. You will be able to use the Internet services once we get directions from the government,” an SMS sent by a telecom operator read.
Meanwhile, an MHA source said Rapid Action Force personnel have been repositioned in the national capital and vigil has been intensified because of the evolving situation.
Wielding sticks and clubs and holding the tricolour and union flags, tens of thousands of farmers atop tractors broke barriers, clashed with police, and entered the city from various points to lay siege to the Red Fort and climb the flagpole on Republic Day on Tuesday.
While farmer leaders, who have been spearheading the two-month protest at the national capital’s border points to demand a repeal of the farm laws, disowned the protesters, one young man was seen hoisting a yellow triangular flag at the flagpole – the centrepiece of the country’s Independence Day celebrations.
The protesters were later removed from the premises of the Red Fort.
Protesting farmer dies as tractor overturns at ITO: Police
A protesting farmer died after his tractor overturned at Central Delhi’s ITO during the farmers’ tractor parade on Tuesday, police said.
They said the details about the deceased are yet to be gathered.
The man died as his tractor overturned at ITO where many farmers participating in the parade had reached from the Ghazipur border after taking a detour of the pre-agreed route for the march, a senior police officer said.
Police said the man was driving the tractor and he came under the vehicle as it overturned.
The farmers draped the body in the tricolour and kept it at the ITO crossing, not allowing the police to send it for post-mortem.
The farmers also lashed out at the mediapersons covering the incident.
Protesting farmers clashed with police at several places in the national capital and entered the iconic Red Fort and ITO in the heart of the city on Tuesday after hundreds of them deviated from pre-decided routes, prompting security personnel to resort to lathi-charge and tear gas.
Chaotic scenes were witnessed at ITO, where hundreds of protesters could be seen chasing police personnel with sticks and ramming their tractors into the buses parked by police.
