Taught a lesson to BJP, say Punjab farmers

Ruchika M Khanna

Chandigarh, June 4

The “expose, oppose and punish BJP” strategy adopted by the farmers has ensured a drubbing for the party in Punjab, besides electoral setbacks in Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.

Celebrating the electoral losses of the BJP in Punjab, where the party drew a blank, and in Haryana and UP, farmer union leaders say the farmers of the region have neither forgotten the atrocities committed on them during their year-long protest in 2020-21, nor forgiven them. This is why the BJP scored a duck in Punjab, lost five seats to the Congress in Haryana and nearly 28 seats in Uttar Pradesh. “We have managed to teach them a lesson,” they say.

Talking to The Tribune, Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) leader Balbir Singh Rajewal said the BJP should learn a lesson from its poor showing in the heartland of the farmers’ struggle. “It is fair and square. They did not let us enter Delhi, we opposed their entry in our villages and told farmers not to vote for them,” he said. He added that the SKM would finalise its strategy for the next course of struggle over the next few days.

Rajewal was referring to the relentless opposition shown by farmer unions in Punjab and Haryana against BJP candidates in recent months in the run up to the election. BJP candidates were not allowed to enter villages, they were shown black flags and farmers confronted them with questions about unfulfilled promises on the legal guarantee on MSP and debt waiver.

Over 240 farmer protests were held in Punjab alone, climaxing at rallies held by PM Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah

Rajinder Singh Deepsinghwala, vice-president of the Kirti Kisan Union, who was also detained at several protests but later let off, said Punjab farmers had rejected the attempted spread of the “fascist and communal regime” which downright ignored the hard-earned peace earned by Punjab’s villagers after two decades of militancy.

The SKM (Non-Political) farmers union led by Jagjit Singh Dallewal, which is spearheading a renewed farmers’ protest and reorganising them at Sangrur’s Khanauri border, is also holding a meeting with its constituent unions to decide on how to proceed with the build-up of angry farmers.

“The way they treated farmers, people have rejected them in the three farmer-dominated states. We are non-political, but are fighting only for the farmers, especially for the families of 770 farmers who died during the farmers’ struggle in 2020-21 and since February this year,” he said.

It’s fair and square

The BJP should learn a lesson from its poor show in the heartland of farmers’ struggle. It is fair and square. They did not let us enter Delhi, we opposed their entry in our villages and told farmers not to vote for them. — Balbir Singh Rajewal, skm leader

People have rejected them

The way they treated farmers, people have rejected them… We are non-political, but are fighting for the farmers, especially for the families of 770 farmers who died during the farmers’ struggle. — Jagjit Singh Dallewal, skm (non-political) leader