Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Dec 13: Amidst signs of the farmers’ agitation demanding scrapping of the three contentious farm laws developing cracks, thousands of farmers from Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and some other states sat on a dharna blocking the traffic on the busy Delhi-Jaipur highway on Sunday after the police denied them entry into Delhi.
Despite the cracks, the numbers of the agitators laying a virtual seize of the national capital kept swelling with more farmers from Uttar Pradesh and a number of southern states joined the farmers from Punjab and Haryana who are staging the sit-in protests on the borders of Delhi for the last 17 days. The Delhi Police in turn has tightened up security at several border points in the national capital by deploying more personnel and placing multi-layered barricades.
The union agriculture minister Narendra Singh Tomar, who claimed that the “progressive farmers” of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand have switched over to the government’s side and expressed support for the tree farm acts, went into a huddle on Sunday with the union home minister Amit Shah and minister of state for commerce and industry Som Parkash for a solution to the impasse as the agitating farmers have decided to further intensify the agitation from Monday with token hunger strike, gherao of the houses and offices of the BJP and its leaders and blocking traffic on the highways.
Led by Narmada Bachao Andolan’s Medha Patkar and Swaraj India national president Yogendra Yadav, among others, the farmers carrying banners and red flags were headed to Delhi under the aegis of Samyukta Kisan Morcha, a joint front of farmer unions, in response to the call for ‘Dilli Chalo’.
Around six hundred police personnel, including Rapid Action Force, were deployed by the Rewari Police to stop the farmers from marching towards Delhi. The police put several layers of barricades and boulders on the highway to stop the agitating farmers.
With the Delhi-Jaipur Highway also blocked, all highways leading to Delhi from Haryana and Uttar Pradesh now have farmers holding dharnas seeking the repeal of the Centre’s three contentious farm laws .
The police said the agitators would not be allowed to enter Delhi and if necessary the police would use water cannons to stop them.
Meanwhile, the barricades put by the Haryana Police led to traffic snarls on both sides of the highway.
Several hundred farmers from Rajasthan and Haryana are slated to begin their march to Delhi from Rajasthan’s Behror and plan to block the Jaipur National Highway-8 which passes through Gurgaon.
Farmer leaders on Saturday had said they were ready to hold talks with the government and would form a panel for the purpose but its condition would be to discuss repeal of the three acts first.
Farmers have been protesting against the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020; the Farmers Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020; and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act 2020.
Enacted in September, the three farm laws have been projected by the government as major reforms in the agriculture sector that will remove the middlemen and allow farmers to sell anywhere in the country.
However, the protesting farmers have expressed apprehension that the new laws would pave the way for eliminating the safety cushion of Minimum Support Price and do away with the mandis, leaving them at the mercy of big corporates.
The police claimed that Chilla border to Delhi from Noida was opened on Sunday morning after the farmers agreed to withdraw the stir following intervention by the defence minister Rajnath Singh who holds considerable influence over a section of the farmers in Uttar Pradesh.
Tomar had claimed that some farmers from Haryana had called on him on Saturday and submitted a memorandum supporting the three acts. Similar support was also extended by the farmers from Uttarakhand who called on him on Sunday and decided to withdraw from the agitation after the centre showed readiness to give in writing that MSP system would not be disturbed.
When Tomar and Parkash met Shah on Sunday, they were accompanied by the BJP leaders from Punjab. The outcome of the meeting, however, was not immediately known.
Even as some farmers leaders accused the central government of trying to divide the unity among the farmers through various means, including taking away a sizeable sections of the protesters in the name of Corona tests, the union leaders they would demonstrate the farmers’ solidarity by observing en masse from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Monday. “We will foil any attempt by the Centre to fail our movement. The government made a few small attempts to divide us and instigate people. But, we will peacefully take this movement towards victory,” some leaders said.
Providing a shot in the arm of the farmers’ agitation, the Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said he would join the farmers’ fast and appealed to all the workers of his Aam Aadmi Party to express their solidarity with the agitating farmers. He also requested the central government to roll back the three contentious farm laws which were implemented by the Centre in September, and demanded a new bill to ensure minimum support prices (MSP) for farmers – currently a policy issue – be drafted and tabled.
“Some people claim that only a few farmers from Punjab and Haryana are participants in the protest. It is their misconception. Farmers across the country are troubled… The new bills make hoarding legal. It will lead to inflation… I urge the central government to leave behind their ego, roll back the three laws and prepare a new bill to ensure minimum support price for farmers,” Kejriwal added.
In a related development, a senior IPS officer of Punjab cadre Capt. Lakhminder Singh Jakhar, DIG, Prisons, resigned from the service to join the farmers’ protest. He said as a policeman he was answerable to the call of duty and could not support the agitation which he claimed was “genuine.” Pointing out that the pieces of legislations were “detrimental to the interest of farmers and their future generations,” he said he decided to relieve himself of the government duty to side with the agitating farmers.
Shiromani Akali Dal’s leader and former Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal has said he has returned his Padma Vibhushan award in protest against the Centre’s farm laws. SAD (Democratic) leader Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa had also announced that he would return the Padma Bhushan award to express solidarity with farmers.
Several international players from Punjab have also extended their support to the farmers’ agitation. Noted Punjabi poet Surjit Patar had also announced his decision to return his Padma Shri award.
Meanwhile, some farm leaders disputed the centre’s claims of sections of Uttarakhand farmers having extended support to the contentious acts. Of those who called on Tomar from Uttarakhand, 90 people have nothing to do with farming. 10 farmers who were present in the meeting have other businesses too. They have been brought here from Uttarakhand by a political leader, said farmer leader Jasbir Singh,
The Bharatiya Kisan Union leader Rakesh Tikait advised the agitators to remain vigilant to ensure that no anti-social elements get an opportunity to mix with the agitating famers and defame the entire movement. “We need to keep an eye so that no wrong elements are among us. All our youngsters need to remain vigilant. If the government wants to talk, we will set a committee and take further decisions,” he said.