Centre, Haryana, UP seek urgent top court hearing

Want farmers’ organisations to be impleaded as respondents in case

CHANDIGARH: Even as the Haryana government intends to persuade protesting farmers to enter into a dialogue for resolving the issue of blockade at the Kundli-singhu and Tikri borders, at the doorstep of the national capital, it is also looking for further directions from the Supreme Court (SC) in the matter.

The protesting farmers had on September 19 stayed away from talks with a Haryana government committee, constituted to impress upon them to clear the blockade.

The apex court had on August 23 said the Centre and the state governments of Uttar Pradesh and Haryana must coordinate to ensure that interstate roads and national highways do not remain blocked due to farmers’ protest.

While the matter, which was listed for Monday, could not be taken up by the bench, the Central government and state governments of Haryana and Uttar

Pradesh requested the court registry to list the matter urgently, in public interest.

“We will also be requesting that farmers’ organisations be

impleaded as respondents in the case,” said an official.

Following the August 23 observations of the apex court, the Sonepat deputy commissioner had held a meeting with the farmers’ representatives. Later, a committee headed by additional chief secretary (ACS), home, Rajeev Arora had invited office-bearers of 43 farmers’ organisations to a meeting on September 19. However, no headway was made as the farmers did not turn up for the meeting.

“We will extend another invitation to farmers for a dialogue to resolve the issue. The state government has been making sincere efforts to persuade farmers to remove the blockades and facilitate free flow of traffic in public interest,” said an official.

On a petition filed by a Noida-based woman, an apex court bench headed by Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul in its August 23 order had said that the solution lay in the hands of Central and state governments concerned.

The bench said they must coordinate to ensure that if the protests are on, at least the inter-state roads and national highways are not blocked in any manner.

Subsequently, the Union home secretary on September 10 had also deliberated the matter with the chief secretaries of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi governments.