Farmers’ Agitation: Deadlock Unresolved

Manas Dasgupta

NEW DELHI, Dec 23: Even as the ruling BJP launched yet another frontal attack on the opposition parties, this time accusing the leftist parties of having ill-treated the farmers in Kerala, West Bengal and Tripura, the states the CPM was in power, the farmers leaders said they could consider the central government’s offer for resumption of talks if the government agreed to legalise Minimum Support Price.

“Send a concrete proposal with agenda and not re-iterate amendments that have already been rejected before,” farm unions said after meeting held in Singhu Border. Even as a final decision on the centre’s latest offer for talks was yet to be announced, the indications was clear that Sunday’s letter by the union agriculture department joint secretary Vivek Aggarwal inviting the farm leaders for talks has not been found attractive by the farmers.

Protesting farmer unions on Wednesday held a press conference at the Delhi-Singhu border asking the government not to repeat the promise of amendments to the new farm laws that have been already rejected but to come up with a concrete proposal in writing so further rounds of talks can be scheduled.

“We have already told home minister Amit Shah that protesting farmers will not accept amendments,” national president of Rashtriya Kisan Mazdoor Mahasangh, Shiv Kumar Kakka said.

Swaraj India chief Yogendra Yadav, who was also present at the press conference, said that the government’s new letter is an attempt to defame the farmers’ movement.

Pointing to the Union agriculture minister’s meeting on Monday with a five member delegation, under the banner of the Hind Mazdoor Kisan Samiti (HMKS), who are in favour of the new farm laws, Yadav remarked that it is a concerted attempt at breaking the farmers’ movement.

“The government is constantly holding talks with so-called Farmers’ leaders & organisations, who’re not associated with our movement at all. This is an attempt to break our movement. The Government is dealing with protesting farmers, the way it deals with its opposition.” Yadav stated.

“United Farmers Front today has written a letter to the government. It states that the government should not question the letter written by the United Farmers’ Front previously as it was a unanimous decision. Govt’s new letter is a fresh attempt to defame farmers’ association” Yadav stated.

The protesting farmers celebrated the “Kisan Diwas” on Wednesday, the birth anniversary of the former prime minister Chaudhary Charan Singh, by skipping a meal, the prime minister Narendra Modi also paid tributes to his predecessor on the occasion praising the dedication of the farmers of the country.

As the government on the occasion re-iterated its “commitment to work for the welfare of the farmers,” the defence minister Rajnath Singh in a series of tweets, said Modi taking inspiration from Charan Singh, was taking taken numerous measures in the interest of farmers and that he will not allow any harm to come to them under any circumstances.

“Some farmers have been agitating due to the farm laws. The government has been talking to them with utmost sensitivity. I hope they will soon withdraw their agitation and resume talks,” he hoped. The union agriculture minister Narendra Singh Tomar expressing a similar confidence assured the farmers that “more reforms in farmers’ laws” were due to come.

Expressing doubts about the government’s sincerity to solve the farmers’ problems, some farm leaders said that the government was making “Attempts to break the ‘andolan’ (protest) by holding talks with organizations that have nothing to do with the ‘andolan’.” They said the farm leaders had not received “any concrete proposal” from the government. “Written proposal by the government is reiterating the verbal proposal during the fifth round of talks that we have already rejected.”

Farmer leader Kulwant Singh Sandhu had said that 32 farmer unions from Punjab held a meeting on Tuesday and discussed the next course of action. A meeting of farmer leaders from across India would be held on Thursday morning where a decision on the government’s talks offer will be taken. In a letter to 40 union leaders Aggarwal had on Sunday asked protesting farmer leaders to specify their concerns over its earlier proposal of amendments in the laws and choose a convenient date for the next round of talks so that the ongoing agitation could end at the earliest. Tomar said he was hopeful that protesting unions would soon complete their internal discussions and resume talks with the government to resolve the crisis.

As the BJP attacked the opposition terming the Left parties’ stand on the three farm laws “hypocritical”, the Nationalist Congress Party chief and former union minister Sharad Pawar hit out at the Modi government for “forcing the farmers to protest for their rights.”

The BJP on Wednesday accused the CPI(M) of “exploiting” the farmers while in power in Tripura, Kerala and West Bengal.

Wherever the Left parties were in power, there was “nothing left” for the farmers and the economy, the spokesman said. “For 25 years, till 2018, there was a Left government in Tripura. I feel sad in saying that there was no MSP in the state for 25 years. Today, the Left leaders are acting as well wishers of the farmers, but all they did was to exploit them.

“The first thing the BJP did after coming to power in Tripura in 2018 was procurement of paddy. As much as 48,716 tonnes of paddy was procured from 27,735 farmers at an expenditure of Rs 86.65 crore,” he said.

Under the Left government, farmers in Tripura were selling rice for Rs 10-12 per kilogramme. Now, under the BJP government they are selling it for Rs 18.50, he claimed.

The spokesman also remarked that the agricultural growth rate was 6.4 per cent when the Left was in power in Tripura in 2017-2018. “In two consecutive years — 2018-19 and 2020-2021 — it rose to 13.5 percent,” he said. “Wherever there is Left, the farmers have been exploited,” the BJP spokesperson alleged.

Pawar commenting on the “Kisan Diwas” said it was unfortunate that farmers were forced to protest for their rights and it was the responsibility of those in power to aptly honour farmers.

The former union agriculture minister wished for justice to the farmers. “It is the responsibility of those in power to aptly honour farmer who forms an important part of economy. But unfortunately the farmer of the country is now forced to stage protest for his rights and demands,” Pawar tweeted. “Wishing for justice to the farmer on the occasion of the National Farmers’ Day,” he added.