‘Expose, oppose, punish BJP’ is Samyukt Kisan Morcha's agenda for Lok Sabha poll

Ruchika M Khanna

Chandigarh, March 31

“Expose the BJP, oppose the BJP and punish BJP” — this is the agenda of the Samyukt Kisan Morcha for the coming Lok Sabha elections.

Though some of the farmer unions had parted ways with the SKM in the run-up to the 2022 Punjab Assembly elections and had put their hat in the poll arena, during the coming Lok Sabha elections, the farmers unions have collectively decided to not contest the poll and instead go with their single-point agenda of opposing the BJP. They will specifically target the constituencies where the BJP won the last parliamentary elections with a thin margin.

Dr Darshan Pal, a prominent leader of the SKM, told The Tribune that they had decided that all farmer unions would now get in touch with other employee unions and trade unions so that they could jointly oppose the BJP in the coming elections. “We are planning to organise Jan panchayats across the country, where we will seek people’s support against the BJP. In Punjab, the Jan panchayat will be held on May 21,” he said, adding that the decision was taken at a meeting of the SKM yesterday.

Balbir Singh Rajewal, whose union is back in the SKM fold, after he himself led the (unsuccessful) political foray of the farmers in the state Assembly elections, said all farmer unions who were part of the SKM would not venture into active politics. “We will dedicate ourselves to the cause of the farmers. However, the ruling party at the Centre owes answers on its bid to hand over the entire agriculture sector to corporates. We will exercise our democratic right to question and oppose the BJP for its anti-farmer policies,” he said.

Rajewal said they had also come in touch with farmer unions in 40 other countries and together they were working to ensure higher remuneration for farmers’ produce; against corporatisation of agriculture; and, for sustainable agriculture that would help in maintaining food security.

Other than SKM members, the Bharatiya Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan), which is the largest farmer union in Punjab, has also decided to oppose the BJP. “Over 700 farmers died in the year-long farmer struggle in 2020-21, forcing the BJP-led Central Government to withdraw the three contentious farm laws. However, they are now again trying to bring the corporates back by allowing the 11 private silos in Punjab to be declared as open market yards (mandis), and not allowing the mandis in these areas to operate for wheat procurement, which begins this week. We will not only oppose such policies, but also the BJP,” said general secretary of the BKU (Ekta Ugrahan) Sukhdev Singh Kokrikalan.

To approach trade unions

• Dr Darshan Pal, SKM leader, said they had decided that all farmer unions would get in touch with employee unions and trade unions so that they could jointly oppose the BJP
• Balbir Singh Rajewal said the Centre owed answers on its bid to “hand over the agri sector to corporates and they would oppose the BJP for its “anti-farmer” policies