2 days after farmer dies at Samana protest site, kin get Rs 5L; sit-in lifted

Patiala/Samana: Two days after a farmer-protester died, the administration on Thursday handed over Rs 5-lakh compensation to his family, following which protesters lifted their sit-in outside the residence of Samana MLA Chetan Singh Jauramajra, even as the broader agitation for a stringent anti-sacrilege law in Punjab continued.Gobind Singh (70), a small farmer from Chattha Nanheda village in Sunam, Sangrur, had collapsed and died on Tuesday while sitting in protest at Baba Banda Singh Bahadur Chowk in Samana. He owned 4.5 acres and is survived by a son and a daughter.After his death, protesters and farmer unions refused to allow a post-mortem or cremation until their demands were met. They sought Rs 5-lakh compensation, a govt job for a family member, and waiver of all outstanding loans.On Thursday, the administration handed over a cheque of Rs 5 lakh to the family and assured waiver of Gobind Singh's loans as well as a government job for one of his children.Kaka Singh Kotda, general secretary of BKU (Ekta Sidhupur), said the sit-in outside the MLA's residence had been lifted after the administration accepted the demands.The protest at Baba Banda Singh Bahadur Chowk, however, continued, with demonstrators saying their larger demand for enactment of a stringent anti-sacrilege law remained unresolved.The agitation has centred around activist Gurjeet Singh Khalsa, who has been perched atop a nearly 400-foot mobile tower in Samana for over 500 days, demanding a stringent law against sacrilege of holy scriptures of all religions.A special assembly session has been announced for April 13, while Punjab assembly speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan has said he would visit the protest site again on April 14.