‘Farm Laws are Poison, Nobody Tastes It’: Small Farmers After PM’s Remark

Raising slogans in her strong voice, Harpreet Kaur holds her poster firmly. Marching with Kaur’s contingent from Mirpur Lakha in Nava Shahar, cheerful women, children and elderly have been camping for the last two weeks at Delhi’s North West border, Singhu to register their protest against the newly enacted farm laws. Kaur, who leads the contingent, is miffed at remarks made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Rajya Sabha during his response to the President’s speech.

Kaur said that the PM’s remarks are nothing but an insult to the farmers who have been raising their voices peacefully and practising non-violence. She said, “After our months of struggle, PM Modi finally opened his mouth. Why was he silent for so long? I fail to understand why the so called reforms could not have been introduced after consultation with farmers’ unions.”

When asked about the PM’s claim that small and marginal farmers’ will be the biggest beneficiaries of the laws, Kaur said, “this is a plain and blatant lie. It is the small farmers who will be the worst victims.” She asked, “How will a small farmer enter into a contract with a corporate conglomerate? How will he seek justice from such a giant? The more shameful part is that they have chosen the Parliament to peddle their lies.”

Further explaining why she thinks the laws are no good, Kaur said, “He [the PM] is asking everyone to test the laws for a brief period of time. Nobody tastes poison because we know the result. We have tested free markets. Our brethren in Bihar are witnessing the fate of abolishing the government mandis. They are working in our farms today. Similarly, contract farming is also not new to us. Pepsi abandoned our potatoes. Sugar cane mills are defaulting on our payments for years. Let us be very clear that we have already tested these laws. He is living in a fool’s paradise if he thinks he can win over farmers with his rhetoric.”

Kaur proudly shared that she is neighbour to Khat Khat Kalan in Nava Shahar, the traditional home of revolutionary Bhagat Singh. “Through this protest, we are celebrating Bhagat Singh’s legacy. He wanted a world free of inequalities. If the government succeeds in its attempts, we will be labourers in our own farms. It [the government] is the kind of new British colonisers Bhagat Singh had warned about.”

Asked about the future of the movement amid government’s reluctance to repeal the laws, Harpreet Singh, the sarpanch of Nava Shahar, said, “The farmers fought Pagdi Sambhal Jatta movement for nine months. The present movement is only two-month old. So we are prepared for the long haul.”

Gurjeet Singh, a farmer from Modhal in Amritsar, said the PM’s remarks spoke volumes about innate contradictions. “If the MSP and government procurement are to continue, why did he bring the laws ? He is saying that small farmers will have institutional access to loans and other facilities. Does he really know how much a bank lends to small farmers? Literally nothing! It is the arhtiya (commision agent) who gives us desired money in wedding, celebrations or death. Even if I fail to pay the interest, he will not auction my land. And which small farmer will survive when big agri-based companies will use 80% machinery in agriculture. The farmers gave Modi a chance because we trusted him and he conveniently breached it every time.” He went on to add,”Modi is talking about doubling our income by next year. I am challenging him to show the results in a single village let alone in five years. But the most offensive part is calling farmers’ ‘parasites’. Which head of the country addresses its citizens like that?”

Another farmer from Budhana in Uttar Pradesh said that PM Modi should travel to the grain market in Delhi’s Azadpur where traders openly defy the central rules in the capital. “People gave him votes because we were told that the precious lands were given to Robert Vadra, son-in-law of Sonia Gandhi for pittance. Now, what is this government doing?” Standing beside him, Ujjawal Kumar, who is preparing for his law entrance papers, said that the laws have been brought to sync liberalisation to its new phase. “We have already tested free market in western Uttar Pradesh. What did we get from it? The new business model is more concentrated on Amazon model where the seller itself is the grower, distributor and processor too.”

Kumar further said, “Agriculture contributes 16% to our economy but supports about 60% population directly or indirectly. If the shift happens to the corporate, we will lose our independence and farms too. The shopkeepers will lose their businesses and lakhs of employees will lose their jobs.” When asked how he sees the movement and its future, he said, “I cannot comment about the future. But this is a struggle for our existence and we will fight it with full dedication, come whatever may.”