The striking farmers have been protesting for months over new agriculture laws that they say will hurt their profits, posing a major challenge to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government.
Indian farmers at a protest site outside Delhi say they won't give up until the government repeals the lawsImage: Manish Swarup/AP Photo/picture alliance
They argue the legislation, passed by Parliament last September, will benefit large corporations at the expense of smaller producers.
For over two months, tens of thousands of farmers have been camping out at protest sites on the edge of the capital, New Delhi, to demand the laws be repealed.
Delhi tractor protest rally
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Violence erupted on Tuesday during a tractor parade in the capital to coincide with India's Republic Day. Thousands of farmers stormed the city's Red Fort, and clashes between protesters and the authorities left one dead and hundreds injured.
"The farmers' movement was peaceful and will be peaceful," said Darshan Pal, a leader of the Samyukt Kisan Morcha group of farm unions organizing the protests.
"The events on January 30 will be organized to spread the values of truth and nonviolence."
Modi says the laws are necessary to modernize Indian agriculture — a sector that employs about half of the country's 1.3 billion population.
Farm unions and the government have been seeking a solution to the unrest, but 11 rounds of talks have so far failed to break the deadlock. The government has offered to push back the laws for 18 months, but farmers say they won't stop protesting until the legislation is withdrawn altogether.
India: Protesting farmers overshadow Republic Day parade
On-going protests against India's new agriculture law have overshadowed the Republic Day military parade.
Image: Charu. K/DW
Military parade on the Rajpath Boulevard, New Delhi
An audience sat watching the Republic Day military parade spectacle in the center of the capital city to commemorate the introduction of the 1950 constitution after India gained its independence from the British Empire.
Image: Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images
India flaunts its cultural diversity
The annual Republic Day parade shows off the country's ethnic and cultural diversity. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ruling nationalist party has previously come under fire for passing legislation considered discriminatory against the country's large Muslim population.
Image: Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images
Socially distanced spectacular
This year's Republic Day was scaled down due to the coronavirus pandemic. The grand military and cultural parade couldn't help but be overshadowed by the tens of thousands of protesting farmers surrounding the city.
Image: Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images
Protesters march on the capital
Tens of thousands of angry farmers rode tractors and horses towards New Delhi during the Republic Day parade to protest a contentious agricultural law which they say threatens their livelihood.
Image: Syamantak Ghosh/DW
Police out in force
Riot police put up barricades in an attempt to hold of the protesters. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been unable to quell the rising anger which is seen as a major threat to his government.
Image: Charu K./DW
Protesters break through police lines
One section of the protest rally diverged from the pre-arranged route and ripped through the barricades forcing police to pull back. Protest organizers said that the other parts of the demonstration stuck to the route they had planned.
Image: Charu. K/DW
Police fire tear gas
Police in the Indian capital fired tear gas after the protesting farmers pushed through the lines of control. Authorities had wanted to stop the protesters from entering the city during the Republic Day parade.
Image: Altaf Qadri/AP/picture alliance
Protesters refuse to let up
Thousands of farmers, many from the populous "breadbasket" state of Punjab in the north, have been camped out near the capital city for weeks. The unions have rejected offers to delay the implementation of the controversial law, demanding its full repeal.
Image: Syamantak Ghosh/DW
Farmers fear for their livelihoods
Half of India's population work in agriculture and represent a large voting block. However, their economic power has waned as other industries develop. Already struck by financial difficulties, farmer unions fear that the new law will allow big companies to buy up large tracts of land making it impossible for small landowning farmers to survive.
