By Harsh Thakor*
The Bhartiya Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan) has organized a large-scale protest at Jeond village in Bathinda district, Punjab, to oppose corporate control over agricultural lands. The rally, attended by various associations representing farmers, farm workers, and government employees, was addressed by BKU president Joginder Singh Ugrahan, who emphasized the grave threat posed by corporate monopolization of the state’s farmland.
On February 13, the BKU (Ekta Ugrahan) announced plans to launch an agitation after March 15, demanding the resolution of land disputes in rural areas across Punjab. Speaking at the rally, Ugrahan warned that the agrarian community in Punjab faces a serious threat from corporate encroachment on agricultural land. He highlighted numerous cases where cultivators have been deprived of their land rights and stressed the need for compiling data to secure relief for affected farmers.
“We urge unions and others to collect data on land dispute cases by March 10. After this, collective action will be initiated to ensure that cultivators regain their land. There are calculated efforts by the central government to hand over farmland control to the corporate sector, as evident in the recent draft of the National Policy Framework on Agricultural Marketing,” Ugrahan stated.
He called for unity among farmer unions to resist the BJP-led central government and protect the interests of farmers and farm workers. Ugrahan also urged Jagjit Singh Dallewal to end his fast and join the pro-farmer struggle with renewed vigor.
The protest at Jeond village is part of a pucca morcha (indefinite sit-in) that the BKU (Ekta Ugrahan) has been staging since January 20, opposing the distribution of nearly 750 acres of land to certain landowners. Ugrahan linked this land distribution to broader efforts to formulate policies favoring corporate interests in the agricultural sector.
However, Bathinda Deputy Commissioner Showkat Ahmad Parray dismissed claims that any corporate entity would acquire the land at Jeond. “The land distribution process was initiated following the Punjab and Haryana High Court’s directives. The government was not involved, as this was a decade-old dispute between two groups of farmers. The Supreme Court has settled the matter in favor of the legitimate landowners, and the land will soon be handed over to them,” Parray explained.
The ongoing struggle echoes the historic Pepsu Mujara Movement, where tenant farmers resisted large landlords demanding a significant share of their produce. Violent confrontations during this resistance led to the enactment of the PEPSU Occupancy Tenants Act of 1963, which abolished the biswedari system and granted ownership rights to tenants. Activists also recall the brutal police and army crackdown on Kishangarh village in Mansa in 1949, which ultimately led to the abolition of feudal practices.
The renewed focus on land rights is tied to increasing corporate penetration in agriculture. Ownership of land is crucial to safeguarding the livelihoods and autonomy of cultivators. The BKU (Ugrahan) has taken up the mantle in the farmers’ enduring fight for justice and self-reliance, advocating for ownership rights for tenants and cultivators who have worked the land for decades without legal recognition or titles. The union aims to expand its resistance from common village lands to regions governed by outdated tenancy laws.
Currently, the BKU (Ugrahan) is waging a struggle over 717 acres of land regulated by a 1950s law, which allocates one-third of the land to original owners and two-thirds to tenants. Disputes over land consolidation have further exacerbated tensions.
*Freelance journalist
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