The Indian Express (Delhi Edition)
Farm protests: BJP faces boycott calls in Punjab and Haryana villages
THE “DILLI CHALO” movement by farmers in February to seek a legal guarantee for minimum support price (MSP) may have been cut short at the Shambhu border between Punjab and Haryana where protesters continue to camp, but its repercussions are being felt by BJP leaders in the two poll-bound states.
Furious farmers are preventing party candidates from entering villages in Punjab, where elections are scheduled for June 1 while similar incidents are also occurring in rural Haryana.
After his party leaders were booed and greeted with black flags as they attempted to enter villages, especially in the Malwa and Majha belts of Punjab, state BJP chief Sunil Jakhar on May 6 lodged a complaint with Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) C Sibin alleging that the Bhagwant Mannled AAP government had failed to ensure the right to campaign.
Last Thursday, a farmer delegation led by Balbir Singh Rajewal visited the CEO’S office to lodge a complaint about the alleged high-handedness of politicians and security forces towards farmers who are raising questions during the campaign. The CEO, in response, urged the farmers not to obstruct a candidate’s right to campaign.
In Haryana, last week, angry farmers attempted to disrupt the rally of BJP’S Sonipat candidate Mohan Lal Badoli, prompting intervention by the police. Other BJP candidates such as Ashok Tanwar (Sirsa), Ranjit Chautala (Hisar), Arvind Sharma (Rohtak), and former CM Manohar Lal Khattar (Karnal) routinely face black flags and slogans from farmers. Last month, an irritated Khattar remarked that the protests would only increase support for the BJP.
However, Khattar’s views did not resonate among the three Independentmlas—dharampal Gondher (Nilokheri), Randhir Golan (Pundri) and Sombir Sangwan(dadri)—whoswitched allegiance from the BJP to the Congress citing concern for farmers and their unmet demands. Their switch triggered a crisis for the Nayab Singh Saini government with former ally Jannayak Janata Party (JJP) of Dushyant
Chautala demanding a floor test.
Amritsar BJP candidate and former diplomat Taranjit Singh Sandhu had his first taste of farmer ire when he was shown black flags in the Ajnala countryside on April 6. Hans Raj Hans, the popularsufisingerandsittingmp from North West Delhi, who is now contesting from Faridkot, a largely rural constituency, jokes that he feels like changing his name to Minnat Raj Minnat (the pleading Hans). “I am forever pleading with my rural brethren with folded hands,” he says.
Ravneet Singh Bittu, sitting Congress MP from Ludhiana, who is now contesting from the same seat on a BJP ticket, livestreamed his frustration at this blockade while reminding farmers he had protested with them during the previous agitation.
The BJP’S urban base made it a perfect ally for the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), which is seen to have a rural footing across the state. But since their break up over the now-repealed farm laws in 2020, the BJP can ill-afford to ignore the rural belt.
According to the 2011 Census, 67.4% of the state’s population lives in villages while only 37.5% is in the cities. Though the urban population has seen a substantial rise in the last decade, rural voters continue to be a significant chunk of the electorate.
The BJP had hoped for an easier landing in the countryside this time, given Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s outreach to the Sikhs and the image makeover it has undergone in the last two years. It also has no dearth of pro-farmer faces like former CM Captain Amarinder Singh, who supported the farmers in 2020.
However, the ongoing agitation seems to be casting a long shadow. Last week, farmers laid siege to Amarinder’s home after a protester was killed in the melee that ensued during a poll event of his wife and BJP’S Patiala candidate Preneet Kaur.
Since April 17, farmers have blocked the tracks at the Shambhu station, demanding the release of three farm activists arrested by the Haryana Police. This has resulted in the short termination or diversion of almost 100 trains a day. As a result, unlike in the past, the farmers do not have blanket support in Punjab’s urban areas this time. Industrialists in Ludhiana have even threatened to hold a counter protest.