Skip to main content

Struggle will continue, say farmer leaders: 'Victory rallies' in Maharashtra, Delhi

By Harsh Thakor* 
The Shetkari Kamgar Mahapanchayat (SKM), which took place recently in Mumbai's Azad Maidan, with at least 100 organisations coming under one umbrella, saw peasants, workers, agricultural labourers, women, youth and students of all religions and castes from all over Maharashtra culminating at the venue to celebrate the victory in terminating the farmers bills.. The rally took place ahead of the the winter session of Parliament in which the Centre moved the bill to repeal the three farm laws.
In addition to celebrating the “historic” victory, the speakers at the rally declared their determination to fight for the remaining demands.
These include a Central law to guarantee a just minimum support price (MSP) and procurement, withdrawal of the Electricity Amendment Bill, removal from the Cabinet and arrest of Lakhimpur Kheri MP Ajay Mishra Teni for the tragedy in which several farmers and and a journalist were run over by a car allegedly belonging to his son, repeal of the four labour codes, end to “selling off” the country to corporates, halving the price of diesel, petrol, cooking gas and other essential commodities, doubling the days of work and wages under MNREGA and extending it to the urban areas.
SKM leaders, including Rakesh Tikait, Darshan Pal and Hannan Mollah, addressed the gathering. Yogendra Yadav, Medha Patkar, Yudhvir Singh, Tajinder Singh Virk, Atul Kumar Anjaan, Rajaram Singh and others also spoke. Tikait accused the Central government of running away from a debate on MSP and other issues.
“Several issues related to farming and labour sectors need attention, and we will travel all over the country to highlight them,” he said. Speaking to the media, Tikait said the Central government should bring a law to guarantee MSP. “Otherwise, January 26 (Republic Day) is not far and 4 lakh tractors and farmers all are there.” He said, the ruling BJP had framed critics of the government as ‘Maoists’, ‘Islamists ’ or ‘Khalistanis'.
The Samyukta Shetkari Kamgar Morcha (SSKM) leader Ashok Dhawale said the Mahapanchayat also called for the defeat of the BJP in upcoming State assembly elections and the Statewide local body elections in Maharashtra.
Yogendra Yadav portrayed the harsh economic conditions prevailing and how the policies of the rulers reversed any progress, while Hannan Mollah referred to the instances when Sikhs joined anti-imperialist movements and how till today they breathed the spirit of secularism at the highest pitch.
Tajinder Singh Virk recounted how in Laxmipur Kher, the team of BJP cadre pounced on him and other farmers like a lion attacking it’s prey. He threw light not only on the barbarity of the incident, but how the rulers framed the farmers. Virk narrated how Union minister of state Ajay Mishra’s son Ashish Mishra was driving one of those vehicles -- and that he was targeted for leading the protest that day against the Minister’s remarks about farmers the previous week.
The Shaheed Kalash Yatra of the Lakhimpur Kheri martyrs, which began from Pune on October 27, traversed over 30 districts of Maharashtra in the last one month, reached Hutatma Chowk. It also commemorated the 106 martyrs of the Samyukta Maharashtra struggle in the 1950s. After this, the ashes of the Lakhimpur Kheri massacre martyrs were immersed in the Arabian Sea off the Gateway of India in a special programme at around 4 pm, just after the Mahapanchayat at Azad Maidan.
Being the death anniversary of social reformer Mahatma Jyotirao Phule, SKM paed rich homage to him. In all, around 50,000 persons attended the rally, with around 12,000 participants occupying the actual assembly place.

Delhi rally

The rally took place following the Bharatiya Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan) commemorating the annual anniversary of the Delhi Morcha at Pakaura Chowk, New Delhi, with a huge public rally, where also around 50,000 persons participated. The speakers at the rally said, after the announcement of repeal of farm laws they would continue their struggle for their remaining demands.
The rally started with a tribute to more than 700 martyrs who sacrificed their lives during the struggle. State committee of the organisation saluted the martyrs’ memorial temporarily established in the rally ground. Participants joined the tribute standing silently for two minutes as revolutionary poet Sant Ram Udasi’s anthem of martyrs ‘chadhan waleoo haqaan di bhet utteh’ (o people who sacrificed their lives for rights) was played from the stage.
Addressing the rally Joginder Singh Ugrahan, president of BKU (Ekta Ugrahan), said the “historic victory” of the farmershas been made possible not only by the unity of farmers and farm labourers from across the country but also global solidarity. He reminded that demands like procurement of agriculture produce of all crops at remunerative MSP and universal public distribution system (PDS) are still unfulfilled.
Sukhdev Singh Kokri, general Secretary of the organisation, stated that demand like procurement on MSP and PDS are unaddressed, even as as Indian state is committed to implement policies of the World Trade Organisation. The farm laws were part of these policies, so the real solution lies in India getting out WTO agreements.
Jhanda Singh Jethuke, senior vice president and Shingara Singh Mann said there was need to guard against complacency, warning, if farmers became less vigilant about opportunist political parties, the upcoming elections may prove to be an assault on their unity.
Harinder Kaur Bindu, leader of women’s wing of the organisation, said that women played leading and equal role in the protest against the farm laws, adding, this role would be expanded in the future struggles. She called upon women to take more responsibility in the struggles. I attach great significance to this in contemporary light of women being subordinated to oppression.
Lachman Singh Sevewala, general secretary of the Punjab Khet Mazdoor Union, insisted, that farm workers have played an important role in the agitation and the unity among farmers and farm workers has become stronger. Among those who were present on the occasion included human rights human rights activists Gauhar Raza, Shabnam Hashmi, and Nandini Sunder, among others.
---
*Freelance journalist based in Mumbai, has toured India, particularly Punjab, has been writing on mass movements

Comments

Post a Comment

TRENDING

Countrywide protest by gig workers puts spotlight on algorithmic exploitation

By A Representative   A nationwide protest led largely by women gig and platform workers was held across several states on February 3, with the Gig & Platform Service Workers Union (GIPSWU) claiming the mobilisation as a success and a strong assertion of workers’ rights against what it described as widespread exploitation by digital platform companies. Demonstrations took place in Delhi, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Maharashtra and other states, covering major cities including New Delhi, Jaipur, Bengaluru and Mumbai, along with multiple districts across the country.
Post a Comment
»

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.
59 comments
»

CFA flags ‘welfare retreat’ in Union Budget 2026–27, alleges corporate bias

By Jag Jivan  The advocacy group Centre for Financial Accountability (CFA) has sharply criticised the Union Budget 2026–27 , calling it a “budget sans kartavya” that weakens public welfare while favouring private corporations, even as inequality, climate risks and social distress deepen across the country.
Post a Comment
»

From water scarcity to sustainable livelihoods: The turnaround of Salaiya Maaf

By Bharat Dogra   We were sitting at a central place in Salaiya Maaf village, located in Mahoba district of Uttar Pradesh, for a group discussion when an elderly woman said in an emotional voice, “It is so good that you people came. Land on which nothing grew can now produce good crops.”
Post a Comment
»

Paper guarantees, real hardship: How budget 2026–27 abandons rural India

By Vikas Meshram   In the history of Indian democracy, the Union government’s annual budget has always carried great significance. However, the 2026–27 budget raises several alarming concerns for rural India. In particular, the vague provisions of the VBG–Ram Ji scheme and major changes to the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGA) have put the future of rural workers at risk. A deeper reading of the budget reveals that these changes are not merely administrative but are closely tied to political and economic priorities that will have far-reaching consequences for millions of rural households.
Post a Comment
»

Penpa Tsering’s leadership and record under scrutiny amidst Tibetan exile elections

By Tseten Lhundup*  Within the Tibetan exile community, Penpa Tsering is often described as having risen through grassroots engagement. Born in 1967, he comes from an ordinary Tibetan family, pursued higher education at Delhi University in India, and went on to serve as Speaker of the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile from 2008 to 2016. In 2021, he was elected Sikyong of the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA), becoming the second democratically elected political leader of the administration after Lobsang Sangay. 
Post a Comment
»

'Gandhi Talks': Cinema that dares to be quiet, where music, image and silence speak

By Vikas Meshram   In today’s digital age, where reels and short videos dominate attention spans, watching a silent film for over two hours feels almost like an act of resistance. Directed by Kishor Pandurang Belekar, “Gandhi Talks” is a bold cinematic experiment that turns silence into language and wordlessness into a powerful storytelling device. The film is not mere entertainment; it is an experience that pushes the viewer inward, compelling reflection on life, values, and society.
Post a Comment
»

Frugal funds, fading promises: Budget 2026 exposes shrinking space for minority welfare

By Syed Ali Mujtaba*  The Ministry of Minority Affairs was established in 2006 during the tenure of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, following the findings of the Sachar Committee, which documented that Muslims were among the most educationally and economically disadvantaged communities in India. The ministry was conceived as a corrective institutional response to deep structural inequalities faced by religious minorities, particularly Muslims, through focused policy interventions.
Post a Comment
»

From Puri to the State: How Odisha turned the dream of drinkable tap water into policy

By Hans Harelimana Hirwa, Mansee Bal Bhargava   Drinking water directly from the tap is generally associated with developed countries where it is considered safe and potable. Only about 50 countries around the world offer drinkable tap water, with the majority located in Europe and North America, and a few in Asia and Oceania. Iceland, Switzerland, Finland, Germany, and Singapore have the highest-quality tap water, followed by Canada, New Zealand, Japan, the USA, Australia, the UK, Costa Rica, and Chile.
1 comment
»