In a statement by joint farmers organisation, Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) calling for country-wide action on November 26-28, 2023, the farmers leaders expressed its’ anger against the Narendra Modi led RSS-BJP government that had made baseless, dishonest and false allegations in the Newsclick FIR against the historic farmers’ struggle. The FIR accused the farmers’ movement as anti-national, funded by foreign and terrorist forces.
The 72 Hour Day Night Sit-In struggle before all the Raj Bhawan at state capitals will be organised with massive participation of farmers and workers also will join this struggle across the country under the banner of platform of central trade unions.
The statement noted that farmers’ movement was a committed, patriotic movement, drawing parallels with 1857 and the freedom movement against foreign loot. It correctly read the nefarious plan of 3 farm laws to withdraw govt support from agriculture and hand over farming, mandis and food distribution to Corporations led by Adani, Ambani, Tatas, Cargill, Pepsi, Walmart, Bayer, Amazon and others.
The 3 farm laws were thrust on the country, the contract law legally bound farmers to grow what the Corporate would buy, would be contracted to purchase costly inputs (seeds, fertilizers, insecticides, fuel, irrigation, technology, services) and sell their crop to the company. The Mandi Act forbade Govt operation, Govt procurement and Price fixation (MSP) to allow a nexus of big companies to dominate crop trade at the lowest price with online networking and Private Silos. The Essential Commodities Amendment Act allowed freedom to hoarders and black marketeers.
The farmers of India read through this subterfuge. They exposed the RSS-BJP – Corporate plan of depriving the people of India of food security, pauperising the farmers, of changing cropping pattern to suit Corporations and allowing free penetration of MNCs into India’s food processing market. They rose as one, rose as a wave in a turbulent ocean, surrounded Delhi and forced the stubborn Modi govt to relent.
In the process the farmers braved water cannons, teargas shelling, road blocks with huge containers, deep road cuts, lathi charge, cold and hot weather. Over 13 months they sacrificed 732 martyrs. They lent voice to the most helpless and deprived sections of India as well as to the voice for justice in media and courts. This was a patriotic movement of the highest quality in the face of repression by a fascist govt serving interests of Imperialist exploiters.
Indian farmers feed 1.4 billion people. They provide subsistence and work to 68.6% population. Govt investment in agriculture infrastructure, promotion of profitable farming, development of the life of village poor and facilitation and securing of modern food processing, marketing and consumer network under the collective ownership and control of peasant-worker cooperatives will bring revolutionary change in peoples’ economy. It will make India as well as people of India rich.
However, in service of corporate and MNCs, Modi govt has launched another attack on farmers. It has used an undemocratic law, the UAPA, which allows the Govt to charge citizens of being terrorists, hence obviously anti national, without having to prove that charge for decades, as even bail is denied.
They have used UAPA to charge Newsclick media house which wrote to support the farmers movement. Newsclick only did the duty that a true media should be doing- to report the truth, report the problems of the farmers and about the united struggle. The BJP Government is using the farcical FIR to spread a canard that the farmers’ movement was anti-people, anti-national and backed by terrorist funding routed through Newsclick. This is factually wrong and mischievously inserted to portray the movement in bad light and seeking to extract revenge for the humiliating defeat they suffered at the hands of the farmers of our country.
Modi govt, after having withdrawn the 3 black acts, is moving again now to falsely charge farmers movement of being foreign funded and sponsored by terrorist forces! All this while RSS and BJP is promoting FDI, Foreign MNCs, big corporations into agriculture! They are deeply committed to condemn and ruin Indian farmers. SKM remains committed to saving farmers’ economy, preventing foreign loot and rejuvenating village economy to build a strong India.
- The SKM expresses its deep anguish and protest and warn the Modi Government to immediately withdraw the false Newsclick FIR.
- SKM will organise village level campaign against false FIR and Modi Govt from 1st to 5th November 2023. Leaflets explaining the motive of the FIR and to rally the farmers to prevent the Modi Govt from throttling farmers’ economy to help corporate and MNCs will be distributed through door to door visit in the villages.
- SKM also decided to campaign in the five poll bound states with the slogans- “Oppose Corporate, Punish BJP, Save Country”
