If the new political experiment by farmers succeeds in Punjab, it will reshape Indian politics in the years to come

Pic courtesy: Bizz Buzz

As 2021 fades into history, we see the emergence of a new political experiment in Punjab. If it succeeds, it will reshape the future of Indian politics in the years to come.

After the year-long protest at the borders of New Delhi forcing the government to rollback the three contentious farm laws, a large and dominant section of the protesting farmers in Punjab have floated a new political outfit – the Samyukt Samaj Morcha (SSM), led by the veteran farmer leader Balbir Singh Rajewal. Of the 32 farm unions from Punjab that were part of the Samyukt Kisan Morcha that led the protests, 22 farm unions have come together to form the new political outfit. Three other farm unions have agreed to support from outside the initiative at the political hustling.

Although seven other farm unions have decided to stay out, and refrain from showing any political leanings, the decision by protesting farmers to plunge into politics by forming their own political party has tremendous political implications. Given that the State Assembly elections are due in another few months, and given the goodwill and rapport that farmers have earned, perhaps farmers realised that there couldn’t be a better opportunity to jump into the fray. Not easy, but backed by a section of the electorate that sees the farmers historic victory as a remarkable effort to reclaim the democratic space, and eagerly wanting them now to take a swipe at politics to cleanse the dirty as well as muddy political landscape, farmers couldn’t resist the temptation.

Taking a leaf from the successful emergence of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) as the third political force, when a popular social movement against corruption led by Team Anna, of which I was a part, suddenly decided to go political. Many of us had stayed out, but a few members decided to take a plunge to cleanse politics literally with a broom, and look how the new entrant in politics has emerged as a strong contender at the national level. Drawing from the same successful experiment when the entry of activists into politics was ridiculed at by seasoned politicians, farmers are well within their democratic rights to try their hand in forming their own government, to take decision-making in their own hands.

But there is a catch here. Leading a protest and fighting an electoral contest and still more importantly leading a new outfit into political fray is by no means cut out for the ordinary. Farmers can be hoping to ride the goodwill generated but unless the leadership develops the political acumen required, it can by no means even think of converting the bonhomie generated into an electoral victory. Failure at the ballot box can push them back to square one. It will also send a wrong signal showing that farming issues are not all that important. Nevertheless, I am hoping that the learning farmers have garnered from the year-long protests; the efforts that had gone to sustain the movement for that long, farmer have acquired the necessary skills to wade through the political waters.

Although farmer leaders have tried their hands in politics in the past too with a few of them winning individual seats, but by and large it has not been an encouraging experience. Many of the well-known farm leaders have lost their deposits in the electoral process. There have also been attempts at forming political parties at the regional level but that too failed to generate enough enthusiasm among the farmers. The farming community was so divided on caste, religion and political ideologies that perhaps it was not the appropriate time to bring them together under a political formation. But the New Delhi protests had for the first time evoked a pan India response, with farming issues donning the national agenda for long. The critical farm issues had percolated deep and far, and farmers across the country did identify with the protesting farmers even if they were physically not present in the protests.

Drawing from the famous victory after intense protests, there is a growing feeling that farmers have finally arrived. People now generally understand what ails the farming community, and how farmers have been denied their rightful income all these years. The sympathy farmers have generated among the various sections of the society was the primary reason for the outpouring of massive public support and that too despite efforts to malign them. This is also the first time, when cutting across political ideologies, personalities and egos, farmers union have joined hands to get the laws repealed. This has given them a new confidence exuding from the realisation of how much political power they hold if they stay together. I only hope they don’t give up on the new found confidence.

If they learn to stay together, farmers can surely create a political upheaval in the years to come. From being treated merely as a vote bank, allured by all kinds of sops and promises at the time of elections, to be soon forgotten thereafter, they have the ability to sway election results in their favour. After all, with 70 per cent rural households engaged in agriculture, farmers have a constituency bigger than what any political party has. They have the ability not only to swing the electoral results in favour of any political dispensation, but with growing political awakening of the immense political power they hold they themselves can take over the role of a decision-maker. It will only be then that they can redesign economic policies to make agriculture a powerhouse of economic growth.   

That is why, as I said earlier, if the Punjab experiment succeeds, it will reshape Indian politics. If Punjab farmers can leave a strong electoral footprint, and showcase a clear cut determination to bring about a healthy change in politics as well as governance, it will inspire and invigorate farming population across the country to stand up and be counted. Even if SSM does not emerge as the largest party in the forthcoming elections, an honest attempt will keep it in the reckoning. People are looking for a fresh approach from a new entrant in politics; hoping that the SSM does not go into an electoral alliance thereby carrying the baggage of its political partner. That will be politically suicidal. At the same time, SSM is expected to come out with its economic vision that lays the steps needed to bring Punjab back to its days of earlier glory.

Whatever be the outcome of the forthcoming State Assembly elections, I am only hoping that farmer unions across the country join hands to forge an alliance keeping the 2014 general elections in mind. They still have three years to go, enough time to reach out to farming populations, and create an awakening on why the need to be in the hot seat. #

Source: SSM's new political experiment in Punjab may reshape law making process in India. Bizz Buzz. Dec 31, 2021. https://www.bizzbuzz.news/opinion/ssms-new-political-experiment-in-punjab-may-reshape-law-making-process-in-india-1091868 

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Where does a farmer figure in electoral politics?

Courtesy: BBC.com

Superstar Amitabh Bachchan couldn’t believe his ears. On the hot seat in front him on the Kaun Banega Crorepati show sat a small farmer from Maharashtra, farming in 4-acres of land. When asked how much would he be earning in a year, Anant Kumar replied something like this: “Not more than Rs 50 to 60,000 a year, and he spends half of it on buying seed, and can only feed his family one meal ..”

The question was repeated again. After listening to the plight of the annadata, Amitabh Bachchan appealed to the nation to come and help farmers. While I appreciate the concern shown by the legendary film star I wonder what would have been his reaction had he known that Anant Kumar is no exception. What he said is largely true of Indian agriculture. Several studies have shown that more than 58 per cent farmers go to bed hungry every night. Ironically, the people who produce food for the country are sleeping hungry.

According to the Economic Survey 2016, the average income of a farming family in 17 States of India, which means roughly half the country, stands at a paltry Rs 20,000 a year. Niti Aayog tells that for past five years in a row – between 2010 and 2015 – the annual increase in the real income of farmers across the country had remained below half a percent, 0.44 per cent per year to be exact. And for the past 40 years, the income of farmers has remained more or less frozen when adjusted against inflation. Agrarian distress is at its worst.  

Primarily for this reason, farmers’ anger has spilled onto the streets. There is hardly a week when we don’t see a farmers protest in one part of the country or another. According to the National Crime Record Bureau, from 687 protests in 2014, these demonstrations increased to 2,683 in 2015, and then doubled to 4,837 a year later, in 2016. In other words, protests have multiplied 7 times in a period of three years, a clear reflection of the growing farmers’ anger. After the long march from Nashik to Mumbai and the recent Kisan yatra from Haridwar to New Delhi, some more big protests are planned, including a big march of adivasis and landless, the angry farm protests are only multiplying. The large scale farmer protests are an outcome of farmers’ anger over the crash in farm prices for three years in a row.

In the run up to 2019 parliament elections, there are still 5 more assembly elections to go. Among these are States like Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, where the rural vote share is very large. These are also the States where farmers’ protests have been quite regular and predominant, with farmers even resorting to stopping vegetable and milk supplies to the urban centres in Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh leading to gunning down of five farmers in police firing. But while the farmers’ anger is quite clearly visible the bigger question is whether it will force political parties to redefine their electoral agenda, bringing agriculture to be the mainstay of economic growth. Why is it that come elections, and all political parties irrespective of their colour and ideology, swear in the name of farmers promising them all they want? But once the elections are over, farmers disappear from the economic radar screen and are easily left abandoned.

I have seen this happening for at least 30 years now. At every election time, political parties seduce farmers with financial baits luring the farming community to vote for the ruling dispensation. For four years, they wield the stick and in the final year before elections a few carrots are dangled. Even these promises remain unfulfilled. Yogi Adityanath had promised to waive all outstanding loans in Uttar Pradesh but in reality waived a maximum of Rs 1 lakh per small farmer. In Punjab, Capt Amarinder Singh had promised to take on farmers debt and also write-off all loans – including from private banks and the nationalised bank – but when in power he has been able to waive only Rs 900-crore bad loans so far. The total outstanding loans exceed Rs 86,000-crore.  In Maharashtra, the total farm loan waiver has remained around Rs 16,000-crore, less than half of the promised Rs 34,000-crores.

It is true that farmer movements have failed to bring about a change, a change in perceptions and a change in economic policies. They have struggled a lot, but the movements are still struck around two major demands – waiving all farm loans and increasing MSP as per the recommendations of the Swaminathan Commission – which is certainly needed but unless the farm unions are able to study, analyse and articulate as to what all investments and financial support the governments provides to other section of the society and make a comparison, I don’t think it will be easy to drive home the point as to how the agrarian crisis is an outcome of public policy.

Economic policies are designed deliberately to make farming economically unviable. That’s the stick the governments have always applied. Except for a little sop here and there like the introduction of bhavantar bhugtan scheme in Madhya Pradesh or to announce a higher MSP for crops without making any provisions to procure it, no structural changes have come up. The malaise runs much deeper and would require a complete overhaul of policies to bring cheers to the farming sector. . In fact, the way the marking set up is being designed the push is clearly towards bringing in corporate agriculture. On top of it land laws are being conveniently amended to make it easy for the industry to usurp farm land at will. Agriculture in reality is being sacrificed to keep economic reforms alive.

Will the ensuing 2019 elections see a change? I am not sure. Unless of course the farmers realise that enough is enough. They have been driven to the wall and to quite an extent they have no one to blame but themselves. For 70 years, they have been taken for an easy ride by politicians of all colours, from all parties. The day the farmers rise above caste, religion and political ideology and vote as farmers, the political landscape will change. The economic policies will also change the day farmers vote as farmers. #

READ MORE - Where does a farmer figure in electoral politics?