The Supreme Court on Tuesday postponed the hearing till January 2 in the matter of compliance by the Punjab government on its order to hospitalize farmer leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal, who has been fasting for the last 35 days for various demands.
A vacation bench of Justice Surya Kant and Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia fixed January 2 for the next hearing in the case. Earlier, Advocate General Gurminder Singh, appearing for the Punjab government, said that an application has been filed seeking three more days’ time to comply with the court’s December 20 order.
Singh said a team of negotiators was holding talks with the protesting farmers at the protest site and efforts were being made to shift Dallewal to a nearby temporary hospital on the Punjab side of the Khanauri border.
The bench said that it does not want to comment on the discussions held with the protesting farmers and only wants compliance with its earlier orders. The bench recorded Singh’s arguments and adjourned the hearing of the case.
Earlier on December 28, the apex court had strongly reprimanded the Punjab government for not sending Dallewal to the hospital. He had also expressed doubt over the intention of the protesting farmers to obstruct the provision of medical aid to the 70-year-old farmer leader.
Dallewal has been on a fast unto death at the Khanauri border between Punjab and Haryana since November 26 to pressure the Center to accept farmers’ demands, including a legal guarantee of minimum support price (MSP) for crops.
Farmers under the banner of Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha have been camping at the Shambhu and Khanauri border between Punjab and Haryana since February 13 after security forces stopped the protesting farmers from marching to Delhi.
