Singhu Border, 26 July (Sangrami Lehar Bureao)- Today, the historic and unprecedented farmers’ struggle in India has completed eight months of continuous peaceful protests at Delhi’s borders. This movement has become the symbol of farmers’ dignity and unity. It is no longer a farmers’ movement, but a people’s movement that represents a struggle to protect India’s democracy and save the country. Protestors will continue with their struggle until their demands are fully met by the Government of India.
On this day, the Kisan Sansad being run in Jantar Mantar, parallel to India’s Parliament throughout this monsoon session, was an exclusive all-women Sansad. In the Mahila Kisan Sansad, today’s debate was around the Essential Commodities Amendments Act 2020. Members of Mahila Kisan Sansad who participated in the debate pointed out that these amendments have given legal sanction to hoarding and black marketing by big corporations and others in the food supply chain. They stated that the dark implications of this law are not just on farmers but on consumers everywhere. They pointed out that in the name of export orders, any amount of hoarding can be done by big capital, even in the case of extreme emergencies in the country! The Government has given up its mandate, intent and power to protect the interest of ordinary citizens, through this 2020 law, it was pointed out. Given the gendered roles thrust on women to take care of food security of the household, this law undermines women’s ability to provide for food security, the women argued. When food becomes unaffordable due to this law, we will be forced to eat less. Women will bear the brunt of this law quite a bit, the members of Mahila Kisan Sansad explained.
The Mahila Kisan Sansad had a woman member, Smt Ramesh, who had lost her husband during this Andolan; despite her personal loss, she has been active in the struggle. The members also paid homage to Kargill Martyrs, on Vijay Diwas today, to salute the soldiers who valiantly laid down their lives for protecting the nation victoriously on this day in 1999.
A resolution was passed unanimously in the Women Farmers’ Parliament that despite the immense contribution of women to Indian agriculture, they do not have the dignity and status that they ought to – in the farmers’ movement, the role of women farmers has to be strengthened through well thought-out steps, it was resolved. The Mahila Kisan Sansad also resolved unanimously that there should be 33% reservation for women in the Parliament and state Legislatures, on the pattern of local bodies like Panchayats. A Constitutional Amendment should be made in this regard for giving due representation for women who constitute 50% of our population, resolved the Mahila Kisan Sansad.
Elsewhere in Punjab, in a majority of local protest sites in 108 locations (these are sites where protestors have been holding dharnas continuously at corporate outlets, outside Adani dry port, at toll plazas etc.), it was women farmers who led the proceedings today.
Meanwhile, a group of women’s rights activists of Delhi who had reached Jantar Mantar to welcome the Members of the Mahila Kisan Sansad were detained by the Delhi Police. They were picked up from Jantar Mantar and detained for several hours at Barakhamba Police Station, and released later.
SKM launched Mission Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand today and announced that the Mission will be formally started with a massive rally in Muzaffarnagar on September 5th, 2021. Under Mission Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand launched today from Lucknow by Samyukt Kisan Morcha, it was announced that the current farmers’ movement will be taken to every village of the two states, to strengthen it the way it has happened in Punjab and Haryana. Through this, corporate control of our food and farming systems will be challenged from all corners of these states also by farmers. In this Mission, anti-farmer Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its allies will be resisted and boycotted everywhere, like their leaders are facing boycotts and protests in Punjab and Haryana. The venerated land of Swami Sahajanand Saraswati, Chowdhary Charan Singh and Chowdhary Mahendra Singh Tikait will now take up the fight of protecting India’s farming and farmers from corporations and their political brokers. SKM called upon farmer unions and other progressive forces to join hands, and as part of the Mission, free up all toll plazas in the states. Protests would be organised at Ambani and Adani entities in the states. BJP and allied parties will face protests in their various programs, and their leaders will face social boycott. For giving shape and effect to this Mission, there will be meetings, dialogues, yatras and rallies organised throughout the two states.
In Haryana, in Bhiwani and Hisar, state government ministers faced black flag protests from farmers yesterday. In Karnal, a BJP meeting was opposed by farmers with black flags. In Ferozepur in Punjab too, protestors gheraoed a BJP leader Surinder Singh.