Protest 2.0

Farmers still have hopes from their leaders, but time is running out. The enemies, in the meanwhile, are sharpening their weapons

- Pritam Singh

INDIAN farmers—led by Punjab farmers and supported by farmers all over India, especially North India but more actively by Haryana farmers—achieved an unprecedented historic victory in 2021 against the agro-business plan to take over agriculture and the BJP agenda of Hindutva centralisation of governance in India.

This victory was unprecedented because the BJP government, which has ruled India since 2014, had crushed all opposition to its various repressive and religio-sectarian policies but had to surrender in a humiliating way before the farmers’ movement by withdrawing three farm laws it had hurriedly rushed through Parliament in 2020.

The humiliation the farmers’ movement inflicted on the government was also historic and unprecedented. Prime Minister Narendra Modi chose Guru Nanak’s Prakash Utsav on November 19, 2021, to announce that his government was withdrawing the three farm laws it had enacted and appealed to the farmers’ organisations to leave their camps on the borders of Delhi and return to their homes.

The government had hoped that its tactical move of choosing Guru Nanak’s birthday to make the announcement would have an emotional appeal to the Sikh farmers to return home after lifting their camps. All the farmers’ organisations welcomed the government’s move to choose the auspicious day to withdraw the hated farm laws. However, to the government’s dismay, they announced they did not trust PM Modi’s assurance and would lift their camps only if the laws were formally withdrawn in Parliament.

The BJP’s supporters launched a widespread media campaign against the farmers’ organisations for insulting the prime minister by not respecting his assurance.

The farmers’ organisations stuck to their guns, and the government had to bite the bullet—the laws were speedily withdrawn formally in Parliament.