Two Massive Mahapanchayats, Signs of Solidarity Between Farmers’ Unions

On 4 Jan, two massive Kisan Mahapanchayats (farmers’ big gatherings) were held 27 km from each other at Khanauri in Panjab and Tohana in Haryana. The Khanauri Mahapanchayat was called by Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) Non-Political (NP) leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal, who is on hunger strike and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (KMM). The Tohana Mahapanchayat was called by Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) and Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU) Ekta Ugrahan participated in it. At Khanauri, Dallewal gave an 11-minute speech from a stretcher, protected by a glass box. He said, 'The agitation is not of Panjab alone but of the entire nation. Farmers of all states need Minimum Support Price (MSP) for their crops.’ In an interview he said, 'I will end my fast only when a Minimum Support Price Guarantee Act is enacted. If not, I am prepared to sacrifice my life at the protest site.' After his speech, Dallewal reportedly felt dizzy and his condition worsened. At Tohana, Joginder Singh Ugrahan from BKU Ekta Ugrahan opposed the National Policy Framework on Agricultural Marketing saying it was even more dangerous than the three Farm Laws, which the govt. revoked in December 2021 (WD Vol 2, Issue 52, Story 5). Ugrahan said he has ‘no objection’ to the KMM and SKM NP demand for MSP, they are together in their opposition to the union govt. Earlier in the day, three women BKU Ekta Ugrahan union members from Bathinda’s Kothaguru village died when the bus they were travelling in overturned in dense foggy conditions. On 7 Jan, on his 43^rd day of hunger strike, hours after meeting the Supreme Court committee, Dallewal’s blood pressure fell to dangerous levels but he revived. SKM has called for anotherMahapanchayat at Moga on 9 Jan.