Indian farmers broke the barricades and returned to protest in Delhi

Hundreds of thousands of farmers gathered in the capital Delhi broke barricades and chanted slogans against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, complaining that the central government of India has not kept its promises to them.

More than 5,000 farmers gathered in central Delhi on Monday to protest against Modi and his government, more than eight months after the year-long protests called off after the government accepted demands to repeal three agricultural laws, Reuters reported.

Farmers gathered in Delhi have demanded implementation of the government’s assurances of minimum support price for all agricultural products and loan waiver for farmers, among other demands, said organizing organization United Farmers Morcha in a statement.

A spokesman for India’s Union Ministry of Agriculture did not respond to requests for comment.

Protesters marched towards the protest site carrying Indian flags and banners, jumping all obstacles including barricades and chanting slogans against Prime Minister Modi.

In November last year, it was Modi who announced the withdrawal of three agricultural laws aimed at deregulating commodity markets. Farmers said at the time that if the three laws were implemented, they would be massively exploited by multinational companies.

Besides repealing the agricultural laws, the central government also agreed to form a panel of producers and government officials to find ways to ensure minimum support prices for all agricultural products.

Last month, the Indian government constituted the panel and invited representatives of farmers’ organizations to join the panel.

During the farmers’ protests, security was beefed up at the borders of the Indian capital as well as increased police presence in and around the protest sites.