Farmers' protest: 'They broke pre-decided conditions for parade, 86 policemen injured', says Delhi Police

New Delhi, Jan 26: The Delhi Police on Tuesday said protesting farmers violated the conditions pre-agreed for their tractor parade and indulge in violence and vandalism, leaving 86 of its personnel injured. In a statement, the police also claimed it did all due diligence in following the conditions for the rally, but the protesters began their march much ahead of the scheduled time and extensive damage to public property was caused during the violence by them.

"The time and the routes for the tractor rally were finalised after several rounds of meetings. But farmers drove tractors off the routes and before the fixed time, leading to vandalism in which many police personnel were injured," news agency ANI quoted Delhi Police Commissioner SN Shrivastava as saying.

''Public properties have also been damaged. I appeal to the protesting farmers not to indulge in violence, maintain peace and return through the designated routes,''Delhi Police Commissioner SN Shrivastava said.

The police statement came as the National Capital witnessed clashes between protesters and police during the tractor parade by farmers to press their demand of repealing the three new agri laws. "The protesters violated conditions fixed for the rally. The farmers began tractor rally before the scheduled time, they also resorted to violence and vandalism,"

Some groups of farmers started going back to their respective sit-in sites on Tuesday evening after hours of chaos during their tractor parade against the farm laws, but thousands of other protesters were still in several areas, including ITO, Nangloi and Mukarba Chowk, of the national capital.

''Hundreds of farmers were sitting at the ITO crossing and many, who entered the city from the Singhu border protest site, were moving towards Delhi's Outer Ring Road,'' he said.

. Hundreds of protesters could be seen chasing security personnel with sticks and ramming their tractors into the buses parked by police in the ITO area of the Capital.

Delhi Police PRO Eish Singhal said. "We followed all conditions as promised and did our due diligence but the protest led to extensive damage to public property. Many policemen were also injured during the protest," Singhal said.