Punjab’s political parties on Monday sparred over the Centre’s handling of farmer protests against the proposed India-US trade agreement, with the BJP asking farmers not to panic while AAP, Congress and SAD accusing the Centre and, in some cases, each other of undermining farmers’ democratic right to protest peacefully.State BJP president Kewal Singh Dhillon sought to allay fears over the trade deal, saying Prime Minister Narendra Modi had personally assured that interests of farmers and livestock rearers would not be compromised.He said the Centre had repeatedly clarified that paddy, wheat, pulses, milk and other farm products would remain outside the ambit of the agreement, and that no deal had been finalised so far.Dhillon accused AAP and the Congress of indulging in farmer politics built on false propaganda, and said the BJP had “stood like a rock” with farmers.He appealed to Punjab’s farmers to stay alert to misinformation and trust Modi’s leadership, adding that any farm body with doubts was welcome to hold talks with the government.Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, however, targeted both the Centre and the Haryana Government over the barricading of farmers travelling to Delhi to protest the trade deal.Calling the Haryana action “unfortunate”, Mann urged both governments not to obstruct farmers through such arbitrary measures and to let them proceed peacefully to the Capital.He said every citizen in a democracy had the right to express dissent, and questioned why Modi had neither engaged in dialogue with farmers nor addressed the media through press conferences even as apprehensions over the deal grew.Punjab Congress president Amrinder Singh Raja Warring accused Mann of “dancing to the tunes” of Union Home Minister Amit Shah by cracking down on farmer leaders headed to Delhi, suggesting an understanding between AAP and the BJP.He asked why the Mann government would move against farmers who were protesting against the Centre alone, and recalled that it was the Congress government in Punjab in 2020 that had given farmers free passage to reach the Delhi border for the year-long dharna that eventually forced the Centre to repeal the three contentious farm laws.Warring said the BJP government, wary of Punjab’s farmers, had used Mann to keep them from reaching Delhi, pointing to the use of police force at the Shambhu border as evidence.Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal said the Centre should speak both with the protesting students and farmers “instead of beating them up”.He said, “The government should find a solution instead of trying to suppress the demands.” Bathinda MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal appealed to the Centre to engage students and farmers in talks rather than suppressing their protests. Referring to recent paper leaks, she said students marching to Parliament for reforms and compensation for candidates who died after the NEET leak had legitimate demands.She also condemned the barricading of Punjab’s borders with Haryana to stop farmers marching against the trade deal, noting she had raised the issue in Parliament over the last two sessions.Ludhiana toll plazas to remain free for 3 hoursLudhiana: All three major toll plazas in Ludhiana district will remain toll-free for commuters for three hours on July 22, said farmer bodies. Supporting the agitation, Ragbir Singh Benipal, organising secretary of the Jamhuri Kisan Sabha, said the Ladowal, Chowkiman and Ghulal toll plazas near Neelon would remain toll-free for three hours.Benipal said there would be no inconvenience to the general public and no roads would be blocked.