TIND team

Farmers' social media accounts were removed on February 13, the day before their protest was scheduled to begin. Sanyukt Kisan Morcha, a non-political organization led by Jagjit Singh Dallewal, and Kisan Majdoor Morcha coordinator Sarvan Singh Pandher jointly issued the protest call. The Haryana police have prohibited farmers from entering the state through multi-layered barricades on the Shambhu border between Punjab and Haryana from Patiala side and the Khanauri border from Sangrur district in Punjab. This prohibition extends beyond the ban on their social media accounts and the extended internet ban in seven districts of Haryana until February 15. In addition to preventing them from entering Haryana, the Haryana police injured and confused farmers at the Shambhu border by shooting pellets at them and using drones to shoot tear gas. More than a hundred farmers reportedly suffered injuries. Facebook and X accounts withheld Prominent farmer leaders have had their X accounts and Facebook pages withheld, including Sarvan Singh Pandher, the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (KMM) coordinator; Tejveer Singh Ambala, the BKU spokesperson (Shaheed Bhagat Singh); farmer leader Ramandeep Singh Mann; Surjit Singh Phull from BKU Krantikari; farmer leader Harpal Sangha; and Ashok Danoda from Haryana, among many others. Additionally, the government outlawed official pages endorsing the movement and providing updates on it, such as Bhavjit Singh's @Tractor2twitr_P, Shaheed Bhagat Singh's Bhartiya Kisan Union, and Guramneet Singh Mangat's Progressive Farmers Front. One of the major farmer unions, BKU (SBS), was spearheading the farmers' demonstration from Ambala, Haryana. Mandeep Punia, an independent journalist, has had both his personal page and the page "Gaon Sawera" removed. Mandeep, a well-known figure who supported the farmers' protest, was detained in 2020. Mandeep recorded his legs while incarcerated and used those notes to write a report for The Caravan. It is generally accepted that the procedure for withholding these accounts is opaque. Both Guramneet's personal and Jagjit Singh Dallewal's X accounts are still active. However, Dallewal's Facebook page is prohibited. "Your account has been withheld in IN in response to a legal demand," X wrote to the accounts. Remarkably, Kisan Majdoor Morcha's official page is still active despite having been started just before the Delhi Chalo protest. It is important to note that the Union government had previously banned numerous social media accounts during the farmers' protest in 2020–2021, among them was the official page of Kisan Ekta Morcha, which served as the SKM's digital branch. High-profile backers at the time, including independent journalist Sandeep Singh and Punjabi singer Jazzy B of Khalsa Aid, had their accounts withheld and remained under lock and key. Accounts meant to debunk propaganda targeted Speaking with The Wire, Bhavjit Singh, the administrator of the @Tractor2Twitr_i page on X (which was hidden in the interim until this report was released), claimed that all of these accounts were hidden on February 12 because farmer leaders were seated at a meeting with union ministers. "We believe that the Punjabi government, in addition to the Union government, was involved in the process of identifying the accounts of farmer union leaders." This is a risky trend, he said, because official farmer mouthpieces intended to refute misinformation and propaganda are being targeted while accounts spreading propaganda against farmers are receiving support. The government's "agenda is to silence all those who dare to speak against or question Prime Minister Narendra Modi, as it will affect his image," according to Bhavjit, ahead of the Lok Sabha elections in 2024. As per inputs from The Wire