Farmers Protest Day 4: Farmer Dies of Heart Attack at Shambhu Border, Protestors Met with Tear Gas, No Consensus Reached in Talks with Union Govt.

As the farmers' protest entered its fourth day on Friday, a 78-year-old farmer participating in the protests died of a heart attack near Haryana's Ambala at the Shambhu border protest site. The farmers were met with tear gas at the protest site as security forces tried to disperse the crowds. This comes after the conclusion of the third round of negotiations between Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, leaders of the farmer unions, and Union ministers Piyush Goyal, Arjun Munda, and Nityanand Rai. The farmers’ unions have called for a ‘Bharat Bandh’ and have urged the farmers to halt all agricultural activities from 6 am to 4 pm and stage road blockades.

The 78-year-old protesting farmer, identified as Gian Singh complained of chest pain on Friday morning. He was rushed to the Civil Hospital in Rajpura, Punjab and then was transferred to Rajindra Hospital in Patiala, where doctors pronounced him dead upon arrival. Hailing from Gurdaspur district in Punjab, Singh had joined the farmers' 'Delhi Chalo' march at the Shambhu border on Wednesday.

Farmers' unions have called for a ‘Bharat Bandh’ or a nationwide shutdown on Friday. Unauthorized gatherings have been prohibited in Noida and other areas of Gautam Buddh Nagar district owing to the 'Bharat Bandh' called by the Samyukt Kisan Morcha and Central Trade Unions. They have urged farmers to halt all agricultural activities from 6 am to 4 pm and stage road blockades.

Union ministers on Thursday held talks with the leaders of the protesting farmer unions in Chandigarh, spanning for over for over five hours. However, no consensus was reached, leading to the scheduling of the next round of talks for February 18. Union Minister Arjun Munda characterized the third meeting as "positive," highlighting a focus on issues raised by the farmer unions.

The Samyukta Kisan Morcha and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha called for the ‘Delhi Chalo’ march, which commenced on February 13. Since then, farmers have been stationed at the Shambhu and Khanauri borders of Punjab and Haryana. The farmers are demanding for a legal guarantee of Minimum Support Price (MSP) for crops and seeking justice for the victims of violence in Uttar Pradesh's Lakhimpur Kheri. Additionally, they are pressing for the withdrawal of the Electricity Amendment Bill 2020.