After one carriageway of the Delhi-Haryana road was opened following the removal of barricades at Tikri border, the Samyukt Kisan Morcha on Saturday asserted that if the Centre wants to open the passage completely, it should also open the way for dialogue for fulfilment of farmers' demand on agri laws.
The morcha, which is spearheading the protests against three central farm laws enacted in September last year, maintained that farmers have never blocked roads.
On Saturday, after 11 months, authorities on Saturday opened one carriageway of the road from Delhi to Haryana after barricades were removed at the Tikri border.
The SKM said the Delhi Police tried to open a 40-foot passage at Tikri border for traffic on Friday even though talks between the administration and farmer leaders were inconclusive.
"The Delhi Police Commissioner in a media interview said that they would like to restore normalcy for commuters. There was heightened tension in the area for some time, with farmers stepping up their protection at the morcha site. Farmers are pointing out towards the possibility of accidents," the SKM statement said.
"The SKM has always maintained that it is the police which had blocked the roads. The SKM has already clarified that it has allowed two-way movement of traffic in the past, and will do so in future too at the morcha sites.
"If the government wants to open the passage completely, it also has to open the passage to fulfilment of the farmers' demands," the SKM said in the statement.
Whether the farmers' agitation will continue in the same location or whether it will move into Delhi is a collective decision that will be taken at an appropriate time, the statement added.
Earlier on Saturday, the carriageway was opened following meetings between farm union leaders and the police.
The Delhi Police on Thursday evening started removing the barricades and concertina wires it had put at Tikri Border on the Delhi-Rohtak highway.
The police had also removed similar blockades on one of the carriageways of the Delhi-Meerut Expressway at Ghazipur border on Friday.
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