Farmer who follows daily 'chain-unchain ritual' at Singhu border protest site

I chain myself every day as a symbolic protest, starting 7 am, and remove it at 9 pm, before going to sleep, he said.Clad in cotton kurta-pyjama and a green turban, sporting a badge over it that bears an image of freedom fighter Bhagat Singh, the Fazilka farmer said he wanted to convey the mental state of farmers.Farmers have been protesting at various Delhi border areas for nearly a year now, seeking repealing of the three contentious farm laws.

Kabal Singh from Punjab every morning after donning his kurta-pyjama wraps himself in heavy chains, locked around his neck, and walks around the Singhu farm law protest site to depict, what he called, the ''mental state of farmers''.

The 44-year-old small farmer from Fazilka district participates in demonstrations in this state of self-imposed bondage throughout the day, only to remove it at night before going to sleep.

Singh on Saturday claimed that he has been performing this peculiar 'daily ritual' at the site since last December, barring a few days in between when he had gone back to his hometown to perform the last rites of his parents.

''I came here at the Singhu border protest site last year in December. I chain myself every day as a symbolic protest, starting 7 am, and remove it at 9 pm, before going to sleep,'' he said.

Clad in cotton kurta-pyjama and a green turban, sporting a badge over it that bears an image of freedom fighter Bhagat Singh, the Fazilka farmer said he wanted to convey the ''mental state of farmers''.

Farmers have been protesting at various Delhi border areas for nearly a year now, seeking repealing of the three contentious farm laws. Singhu border between Delhi and Haryana was the fountainhead of the farmers' protest. From there the movement gradually expanded to the Ghazipur border between Delhi and Uttar Pradesh and other sites.

On Friday morning, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that the government has decided to repeal the three farm laws, there was a sense of relief among the protesting farmers at these sites.

''I am very happy and I thank Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his decision. However, our fight is not finished. Along with repealing of farm laws, we also want legal guarantee on Minimum Support Price (MSP). Once our demands are fulfilled by the government, I will remove my chains on the stage of the Samyukt Kisan Morcha'' he said. Singh, who earlier used to drive private cars for a living in Punjab, said during his 11-month-long symbolic protest, he has lost many near and dear ones, but he soldiered on.

''Before the protest began, I lost my 20-year-old daughter to jaundice. I spent a huge sum of money on her treatment, but still couldn't save her. Eight months ago, my father died after prolonged illness. My mother too had slipped and broken her hip. She then underwent a surgery which was not successful and she died last month,'' he rued.

Singh recalled that he had removed his chains on two occasions, first on his father's demise and then on his mother's death to go back to his city.

''Parents are like God, and I had removed my chains to go to my native village to perform their last rites. Now, I have my wife and 14-year-old son in my family. My cousin supported me a lot during the hard time my family faced and, he is still backing us,'' the small farmer said.

He said he had received a call from villagers on Friday that a parking lot is planned to be built in his village, which will ''carry my name''.

Asked how, he relieves himself during day time and if he removes his locked chain, Singh said, ''No, I just somehow manage. I don't remove my chain during day time''.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)