By Gaurev, Karthik, Lekh*
On 28th February 2025, Dalit laborers in Punjab, mobilized under the leadership of the Zameen Prapti Sangharsh Committee (ZPSC), achieved a groundbreaking milestone in their prolonged struggle for land rights. In a bold declaration, they claimed possession of 927 acres of ‘be-chiraag’ (abandoned/absentee) land in Beed Aiswaan, on the outskirts of Sangrur city.
This land, officially owned by the erstwhile princely state of Jind or held as ‘benaami’ (unregistered) property, had no legal heir following the death of its last ruler. Despite continuous demands for the state to classify it as nazool (public) land and redistribute it among Dalits and other landless communities as per the Punjab Land Reform Act of 1972, no action was taken. In response, the ZPSC waged a battle to claim this land on behalf of local landless people.
By scripting this new chapter, the land struggle in Punjab has transcended into a new phase—transitioning beyond the resistance for Dalits’ rightful one-third share of panchayati (local government) land to directly confronting the defiance of feudal land structures and absentee ownership. The movement has also identified 153 more villages across Punjab where similar large tracts of absentee land exist, paving the way for an even more intense confrontation for land redistribution.
Stripping of Land Rights for Dalits
Punjab has one of the most acute caste-based land inequalities in India. Dalits, despite comprising 38% of the state’s rural population (2011 Census)—the highest proportion of Dalits in any Indian state—own less than 3.5% of the land. Over the last decade, the ZPSC and other Dalit labor organizations have organized militant struggles to establish their legal right to panchayati land. However, these rights have been stripped away through violent suppression and the unscrupulous use of proxy Dalit candidates by upper-caste landowners, who continue to occupy and retain control.
Beyond the panchayati land struggle, the ZPSC has also investigated how vast landholdings in Punjab violate the 17.5-acre ceiling for irrigated land set under the neglected Land Ceiling Act of 1971. Studies—including the seminal 2001 volume *Land Reforms in Punjab*, edited by Prof. Sucha Singh Gill—have explored how land ceiling laws have been violated by large landowners, many of whom flout the very laws they are supposed to uphold.
Link of Land Struggle with Politics of Resistance
Land ownership is a basic prerequisite for human existence. For Dalits, the struggle for land is not just about economic survival but also about dignity and emancipation from the stranglehold of caste oppression. Dalit women, in particular, face merciless repression when they attempt to access grass, fodder, or saag (leafy greens) from the fields of powerful caste landowners. ZPSC activists have repeatedly emphasized that landlessness is central to caste subjugation, and capturing land poses a direct challenge to centuries of caste oppression.
The roots of this movement can also be traced to Punjab’s long legacy of land struggles. ZPSC leader Mukesh Malaud has drawn parallels between this assertion and past movements, from the agrarian resistance led by Banda Singh Bahadur in the early 18th century to the Muzara movement of the 1930s and 40s in PEPSU (a precursor to modern Punjab) and the Naxalbari-inspired land struggles of the 1960s. The movement also resonates with Manyavar Kanshi Ram’s slogan: "Jo zameen sarkari hai, wo zameen hamari hai" (The land that belongs to the state belongs to the Bahujans).
Mukesh further asserted that Dalits cannot depend on powerful caste farmers to raise demands on their behalf. True *ekta* (unity) with farmers can only emerge when Dalits establish parallel or independent power, rather than seeking solidarity from a position of inequality.
Begampura: Resonating with Slogans of Victory
The reclaimed land has been renamed Begampura—the city without sorrow—manifesting the aspirations of Guru Ravidas for a casteless and classless society. Today, Begampura resonates with the sounds of celebration—hundreds of Dalit laborers playing the dhol, dancing bhangra, raising revolutionary slogans, and lighting the chiraag (oil lamp) symbolizing the undoing of caste hierarchies.
This action marks not just a groundbreaking step in Punjab’s land struggles but also a radical expression of Dalit self-determination. The fight, however, still has a long way to go. The ZPSC and Dalits must establish broader bonds across societal divides and be prepared for volatile counterattacks by upper-caste forces and the State. This action has lit a spark for crystallizing a broader movement to reclaim land and dignity for Punjab’s most oppressed communities.
ZPSC Achievements and Future Challenges
In India, the land question intersects and overlaps with the caste question. The Green Revolution reduced the economic dependence of Dalits on landed castes, but they still largely depend on the land for fodder for their cattle. The ZPSC’s land struggle, where successful, has further reduced this dependence. Women are no longer subjected to abuse and harassment at the hands of Jatts while collecting green fodder from their fields.
The decade-long struggle of the ZPSC has written a new script. Though most of their demands are economic in nature, they are simultaneously battling caste oppression and discrimination. They are waging resistance against Jatt hegemony in villages by combating upper-caste-dominated institutions like Gurudwaras and village councils. They have successfully captured possession of the reserved one-third of village common land for Dalits and established cooperative farms in more than 150 villages. The organization recently launched a march on 20th August, which took 44 days to cover all 300 villages.
However, the next challenge they face is how to build a united struggle on these demands with the working people of other middle castes, who face the same economic deprivation while battling the wave of caste hierarchy, oppression, and hate.
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With India Labour Solidarity UK. Click here for the original article
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