A Politicised Fast

Punjab farm unionist Jagjit Singh Dallewal’s fast has crossed 40 continuous days and even after appeals by the Supreme Court he remains adamant about fasting until the Centre “listens” to the demands of “farmers.” It is another matter that these demands are couched in such maximalist terms that these demands cannot be met, short of economic ruin for the entire country.

The demand is simple: “legalise” the Minimum Support Price (MSP) system as it had prevailed until now in the state. These union leaders have not thought through the consequences of such a step or, what is more likely, don’t care about the consequences for the entire country. For one, if “legalised” then every single grain brought to a market yard across the length and breadth of India will have to be purchased by the Centre.

Under a “legalised MSP” system, these costs will have to include all states and Union Territories and a separate legal regime for Punjab cannot be carved out.

Short of ceasing every other economic activity—administration, investment, consumption, everything—such expenditures cannot be sustained. Activists who back “legalised MSP” have made a case by artificially lowering the money required. It is worth noting that the Centre spends close to Rs50,000 crore every year in Punjab alone for backing these wheat and rice purchase operations. If the demand is acceded it will have only one implication: a massive and continuous income transfer by funded by taxpayer money to a select group

The reality is that agriculture is a private economic activity and is not controlled by the government. Mechanisms like MSP, crop insurance, remunerative prices, availability of inputs at reasonable prices are to help farmers but technically the Centre is not bound by any law to help farmers. If it does so, it is purely due to the concern of farmers’ welfare. Now, that helping hand is being twisted by politicised farmers’ unions of Punjab.

AN UNSETTLED STATE

It is not that politicians in the state are not aware of the extreme nature of these demands. Sandeep Jakhar, MLA from Abohar, said in a tweet on Sunday that, “I too am a farmer’s son and our family has been farming for generations. I also feel there is a crisis, a need to review our state and centre’s agriculture policies, but also agree with many farmer leaders who said yesterday that what is happening now is pure politics and one-upmanship, we are losing public support and with constant blockades, Punjab is losing revenue. Labour, industry and traders are suffering…Dallewalji is just being used as a pawn…”

These, however, are voices in wilderness.

On the one side is the state government that has proved ineffective in handling the agitation over years. The state’s agriculture minister wants Union agriculture minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan to help with the crisis. There is no reason for the Centre to entertain the agitating farmer unions given that their demand is ultimately about a permanent and legalised income transfer.

Road and rail blockades that are unpopular with everyone in the state except farmers’ unions are now the order of the day in Punjab.

On the other side is the Supreme Court that has taken a very sympathetic approach in a matter that is largely political. The SC went as far as to appoint a “high powered” committee with a mandate to talk to the farmers’ leaders. Most of the unions have refused to meet with the committee. The court’s orders to get Dallewal to a hospital have not been enforced yet.

On the third side is the Centre which, after burning its hand in negotiating with farmers unions during the agitation over farm reform laws back in 2020 and 2021, is understandably chary of any involvement in what is thankless politics.

THE END GAME

The longevity of the agitation by a select group of farmers’ unions at Khanauri and at Shambhu in Punjab had been used to convey an impression that these demands are “fair and just.” The reality is that because the number of farmers involved in the agitation is relatively small, the agitation has staying power. A better measure of the “justice” aspect would be to gauge the mass involvement of farmers from neighbouring Haryana and possibly Uttar Pradesh. There is no sign of such participation.

The result is that ultimately it will be a battle of attrition. Some farmers’ unions will continue to protest simply because they can protest. It is least likely that a demand for “legalised MSP” will be entertained let alone accepted. The real loss will be that of Punjab that continues to ebb away its economic vitality. Anyone who cares to look at the state’s economic indicators in comparative perspective can see how far down it has gone since the heady days of 1970s and 1980s when it was at the top of the economic league tables.

agitating farmersfarmer unionsfastJagjit Singh DallewalMSPPunjabSupreme Court of IndiaWeb Exclusive