Indian Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi will be arriving in Patiala for an election rally today (May 23) at 4.30 pm. In anticipation of his arrival, tight security arrangements have been made in the city. The security arrangements are also due to the fact that farmers sitting on strike at Shambhu are currently marching towards Patiala to ask questions to PM Modi. However, a heavy police force has stopped the farmers by erecting barricades in Rajpura itself. Its video has also surfaced, in which farmers and police can be seen tussling face to face.
Farmer leaders said that their unions will attend the PM’s Punjab rallies to question the PM about their demands to the Central Government. Not only this, they also intend to question the PM regarding the farmers’ protest in Shambhu, where protestors were pelted with rubber bullets, tear gas and other anti-rioting equipment. Several farmers were injured, with one, Shubhkaran Singh, even losing his life.
Due to security reasons, the old bus stand of Patiala has been closed. Heavy barricading has been done throughout Patiala. Before PM Modi reaches the rally, Special Protection Group (SPG) will take over the entire stage of preparations for the PM’s arrival. First the platform will be inspected bomb disposal and dog squad. Apart from this, some commandos of SPG will also be present in the rally among the common citizens in plain clothes, so that if anyone tries to penetrate this maze of security, they can be swiftly caught. DGP Gaurav Yadav has put Patiala on high alert for PM Modi's rally.