Government will loot sellers first, then buyers: Protesting farmers

Protesting farmers near Kherwadi junction, Bandra, on Monday. Pics/Bipin Kokate

In a massive show of strength, thousands of farmers from across the state converged at Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Udyan, Bandra, at noon on Tuesday to raise a unified voice against the new farm laws. The protesting farmers and members of various agricultural organisations said that through the forced laws, the central government plans to first loot the sellers and then the buyers, and pass on the benefits to the corporates.

Protesting farmers near Kherwadi junction, Bandra, on Monday. Pics/Bipin Kokate

The farmers and members of different agricultural organisations had initially planned to take out a protest march from the Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Udyan near Collector's Office to BKC. However, they were stopped at the garden by police personnel, about 700-800 of whom were deployed in the area to maintain law and order.

The agitation was restricted to the premises of the garden and the road adjacent to it. The farmers, waving red flags, represented Kisan organisations from across the state, such as Kolhapur-based farmers union Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana (SSS) and Pratibha Shinde-led Lok Sangharsh Morcha.

Protest was peaceful
A senior police officer said the hundreds of police personnel were maintaining law and order since 7 am on Tuesday, but faced no problem as the protest was entirely peaceful. "There is a minor traffic congestion, but the situation is completely under control," he said. Police had barricaded multiple roads as the area witnessed massive vehicular as well as pedestrian movement. Traffic on the Western Express Highway on the Kalanagar side saw bumper to bumper traffic.

Former MP and current SSS chief Raju Shetti, who led a large delegation of farmers from Kolhapur to the city, said, "It goes without saying that we are here to oppose the three farm laws that the central government has tried to force upon us. Until the government takes back these laws, our sangharsh will go on."

Farmers united
"The government is trying to repeatedly convey that this protest is just of a few select groups of people, and is even trying to give it a communal and political colour. But the reality is that this andolan [protest] belongs to farmers from across the nation," Shetti said.

He added, "Farmers feel that after the implementation of these laws, their land will not remain theirs and that the corporates will snatch it away from them. They believe that they won't be able to fix the price of their crops, which they grow after immense hard work and trouble. Why? Because the godowns will be of corporates and the stock limit will be over. Now they have all the money so when we [farmers] go to sell our produce they will lobby and drop the prices and buy all the stock. And when we don't have anything left to sell, the middle and lower middle class in towns and cities will suffer. Their (the government) plan is to first loot the sellers and then the buyers. They will loot everyone just to earn a quick buck. I just want to ask the government one thing: what kind of an insatiable appetite do you have for money?"

Centre has shut doors
Asked about the talks between the farmers' organisations and the Centre, Shetti said, "The government has now shut the doors of communication. And we are not budging from our stance. Until the government takes back the three laws and implements the Minimum Support Price (MSP), we won't budge. Why is the government hesitating from giving farmers a fixed MSP? Because it knows that if they give the farmers a fixed MSP, no private player will be able to come into the agricultural market and make a profit.

"They (the government) are most interested in rate fluctuation and to earn profits for corporates. If MSP is guaranteed, then the market will become stable and private players won't be able to cut profits."
He added: "Farmers have come here from every nook and corner of Maharashtra. The message we want to give the central government is that just because we are quiet, doesn't mean that we agree with its stance. We are quiet because these laws have been temporarily stayed. But if the Maharashtra government tries to implement these laws or even support them, the agitation in Mumbai and the rest of the state will be much bigger than Delhi's."

Noted activist Feroze Mithiborwala said, "Farmers from across the state have made a difficult choice. We are building support for the farmers in the city. We need to have sustained movements in the cities to explain to the farmers that they need to support those protesting at the borders near Delhi."

Laws only for corporates
Mithiborwala explained, "All the three laws are flawed and that is why this sitting with amendments and striking out a line or two from here and there is not going to work. The bills were made by the corporates for the corporates. Essentially, farmers have realised that this is all about corporate farming; you will find corporates entering the food sector, taking apart the Food Corporation of India and the Mandi system. The Mandi system has helped the farmers of Punjab and Haryana and they are the rich farmers of this country. Modi has also removed some essential foods from the laws, which could now be hoarded by private players."

Lastly, he pointed that "Modi did not confer with the stakeholders, and one of them is farmers. Whenever a bill is made, the stakeholder is consulted. For something as big as the farm bills, Modi should have sat down with all the Kisan organisations and had a dialogue. He did not do that. He essentially sat down with the corporate houses and formulated the bill. That is the biggest problem."

Satbir Singh, 68, general secretary of Kirti Kisan Union of Punjab, who has also been taking part in the agitations at the border near Delhi, told mid-day from the garden in Bandra, "This is the first time that farmers are travelling from Punjab to Delhi on their tractors to protest agricultural bills. They have come to Delhi because it is the question of their farms and their land. That's why we [farmers] need to save our land first and the rest will follow."

When asked about the situation at Singhu border, he said, "This is not just a movement of farmers who hail from Punjab and Haryana only, it is an illusion that the government is projecting as the reality. The agitation and protests at the borders of Delhi remain as strong as ever and continue to gather momentum."

800
Approx no. of cops deployed in view of the protest march