Bulwark of resistance : A photo essay on farmer’s movement

Citizens should stop creating obstacles for the government. They keep finding reasons to protest. Against lynching. Against sexual harassment. Against caste violence. Against snatching the statehood of some state. Against internet shutdowns in a state. Against shutting down the telecommunication system in a state for a year. And so forth. As if this wasn’t bad enough, they have now turned their attention to anti-national issues—opposing citizenship laws and beef ban laws. The leftist phobia that corporatisation will ruin the agricultural sector and farmers is the most recent addition to the list. It is not acceptable to ignore and create barriers to the majority’s cultural, social, and political threats. We need to recognise how the national growth is hindered due to these ‘andolan jeevis’.

This is the gist of most of the forwards we see on random social media groups!

In recent years, a template tactic has been used to discredit all types of dissent in the country. The IT cell is put to its best advantage in distributing these stories. They send out ‘viral’ messages/posts alleging that protests are wasting national resources/taxpayers’ money and that roadblocks caused by civic agitation cause significant public annoyance. If the protestors are Muslims, they are labelled as infiltrators from Pakistan or Bangladesh; if they are not Muslims, they are labeled as Maoists. They create paranoid narratives about national integrity and national security on a regular basis. They attempt to stifle protests by separating demonstrators along religious, caste, and gender lines. Protestors are being threatened with the full might of the state apparatus, including the police, IT, ED, CBI, and others. State’s power is used to physically assault protestors. With the help of tainted media outlets, the credibility of the protesters is destroyed. When none of this succeeds, they incarcerate the citizens who are protesting.

It’s a never-ending saga.

To overcome these obstacles, the protestors were forced to adapt their tactics in novel ways. They refer to these protests as obstacles/barriers since their inventive means of protest go beyond the state’s pre-determined templates.

The most recent example of such a barrier is the farmers’ protest that has lasted over 300 days.

Over a lakh farmers have been demonstrating at New Delhi’s borders since November 2020. They’ve put up a huge roadblock in the way of the union government. The administration has tried various approaches to prevent this “obstacle” from entering the capital. Hundreds of police officers had been dispatched to the scene. Water cannons, batons, tear gas, and weapons were deployed. To keep the protestors at bay, roads were dug up, iron grills were installed, and spikes were planted. While the administration failed to secure the national borders as it was supposed to, the area around the capital city’s borders was reminiscent of a war zone.

Farmers near the New Delhi border hung on to their positions despite all of these challenges by persevering and utilising nonviolent tactics. Farmers are determined to act as a bulwark against exploitative capitalist forces in order to protect the rights of ordinary people.

This organic barrier of the farmers is firmly rooted in their land.

These agriculture laws were not requested. There were no protests on the matter. There was no discussion with any of the states. There were also no hearings in front of any parliamentary committee. These farm laws were enacted by the Modi government underhandedly. While the country was reeling from the effects of the COVID-19 outbreak and the ensuing lockdown, the administration saw it fit to rush through the legislation. The government ignored the opposition parties’ demands in the Lok Sabha and passed laws based on its majority. The laws in the Rajya Sabha were enacted entirely by voice vote! (this voice vote was not even recorded) As a result, farm laws were enacted during the COVID-19 period.

Earlier, a massive anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protest was squashed. The government knew that there would be no hindrance in doing so. No one would be protesting in the streets. 

Yet, millions of farmers defied all of these predictions and took to the streets.

When the farmers began to protest, it was assumed that they were only protesting in Punjab and Haryana. They went unnoticed for the first few months. Tear gas canisters, water fountains, barriers, the digging of tens of feet of roadways, and police beatings on the farmers were all utilised as the farmers marched into Delhi. From their food (lassi-tea) to hot water for bathing, from washing machines to massage chairs, from jeans-t-shirts to their eloquent language, the farmers were humiliated and discredited. When this failed, the protestors were labelled as paid mobs, Khalistanis, radicals, turban Naxals, thugs, and other derogatory terms. Despite this, the demonstrators remained defiant.

The debates on social media and in the mainstream media do not help us understand this trend. Understanding the farmer’s connection to their land would necessitate a far deeper engagement.

The full ideological clarity about the protests—whether it was an 80-year-old or a 24-year-old individual— was one of the remarkable realisations at the protest sites.

These demonstrations gave the world a new perspective on what a movement should be like.

We now only recognise protests that are covered by the mainstream media. Particularly that of the exploited, the labourers, and toilers. But how would the demonstrators’ persecution and the deep scars of their injustice produce TRPs? Farmers, for example, had to travel all day—toiling under the sun—from Nashik to Mumbai before the protests reached the mainstream media.

Given these experiences, this peasant movement resorted to new methods to make its barrier effective.

The number of people who took part in the movement was in the millions. It’s difficult to gather so many people together, but it’s much more difficult to sustain a movement for so long.

It necessitates extensive planning. Providing food, sanitation, health, and housing for that many people is a massive undertaking.

The so-called “management gurus” can utilise the farmers’ organisation of this movement as a textbook case study.

They built dwellings out of the tractors and trolleys they brought with them. They made grass mattresses brought from the fields, made tarpaulins, plastic roofs, clung to each other, and built their new village. In this village, some people heated water, some washed clothes, some cooked, and some fed with love.

The Sikh community started several communal kitchens at various places. No matter who you are, no matter when you show up, they never let anyone go hungry. These teachings of the Sikh culture continued to guide them.

They’d never question your presence. Everyone seemed to be working with honesty and good spirit as if they realised they were doing something essential. Someone will start a library in your tent, while someone else will clean and repair the visitors’ torn slippers. People would be dropped off at the protest site for free, and there would be many other acts like this. These were not transactional interactions. People went about their daily routines doing what they enjoyed. Nobody was under any obligation to do anything. Whenever necessary, there was also a collective response.

Haryana Kisan Sabha’s comrades were talking on the border. “At this langar all of us serve. Whether it is to make something, slice something, or grow it, we all do it. I have picked up so much Punjabi, I started wondering if I was going to forget my Haryanvi dialect. Most newcomers don’t even know it. The joke is that these Punjabis are annoyed because the rations they brought are still lying around because there are so many carts of food grains and vegetables coming from the villages of Haryana every day that they have not had to take out their rations yet.”

There was diversity in this struggle, of method and its implementation. Songs were created just for the movement. Many songs were composed describing all these struggles, revealing the farmer’s relationship with their land, and asking the authorities for answers. Many Punjabi and Haryanvi artists directly expressed their support for the farmers’ movement. The new songs (folk songs/rap and pop songs) of this movement became an inspiration to the protesters. Not only the artists but also many people involved in the movement continued to experiment in this field based on the folk art of their respective areas.

An experience in Tikri village is very important. During the lockdown period, many businesses were closed, jobs were lost, many people often did not have money and did not have food at home. But since the kitchens at the movement started, many of these villagers started coming here every morning and evening. The people who ran kitchens were even happier when they realised this because they would help alleviate some of the suffering of these people.

Many organizations, institutions, and people from all over the world were connected to it. Some were seen providing boiled chickpeas for breakfast and some serving halwa. Some others were seen bringing water bottles, and some provided  a truck full of fruits from their orchard, while others were seen providing medicines, a free medical camp, and so on. The key thing to remember is that the food, fruits, and water were provided to everyone, not just the frontiersmen. It was for everyone hungry or thirsty. In fact, when we visited, we too were fed with love and warmth. 

The giver gives, the receiver takes;

someday,

the hands that receive should give too!

These words by Vinda Karandikar come true as thousands stand in solidarity.

Another key point to remember is that water and toilets were provided in some areas during the early days of the movement. But as the agitation grew stronger, the defunct government became foolish and shut it down.

But farmers couldn’t be stopped due to lack of water. They promptly deployed tankers—small and large—motors, and agricultural pipelines from their village and began getting water from wells and ponds near the agitation site.

After the government blocked the roads leading to the toilets, they started constructing pucca toilets to take care of the hygiene and sanitation of themselves and the people around them. This movement, noted for being self-sufficient in all respects, will certainly be studied from now on.

Although the mainstream media overlooked the events, the portrayal of the events by several local YouTube channels and groups during this period became a historical document. In addition, proper and efficient use of social media has proved crucial. However, the offline documentation was equally effective.

Newspapers like ‘Trolley Times’, which started especially for the agitators, took it a step further.

Navkiran from Trolley Times shed some light on the role and rationale behind this. The movement, which began in various Delhi border areas, grew to such proportions that it was difficult to comprehend what was unfolding. At the same time, the government’s recent restriction on the internet in several locations had added to the confusion. As a response to this and the rhetoric of the mainstream media which had become a puppet in the hands of the government, the Trolley Times, started by a group of young people, soon emerged as the voice of the movement.

Many people of the movement, particularly the elderly from rural areas, did not find digital social media to be convenient. In light of this, Trolley Times began publishing in two languages: Hindi and Punjabi. The purpose behind this was to ensure that people would inform others about the contents of the paper in their respective languages, which would further strengthen their relationship with each other.

People started reading Trolley Times to each other as events, speeches, demands and personal experiences began to circulate in the newspaper. In a short time, Trolley Times became popular not only among the protesters but also around the world.

As a result, the voices raised by protesters garnered attention from all across the world. This was undoubtedly a significant moment.

Another significant endeavour of this was the library. At the Shaheed Bhagat Singh Library, you can get books, no matter what time of the day you visit. There were some tarpaulins and a tractor-trolley on the back support, book racks, benches for sitting and reading, and carpets. That’s it.

Many people appreciated the concept of this library. Visitors to the library used to come from far and wide and they could not always return the books. In this case, Navkiran and his companions would give the book to them but on one condition, that is, after reading it, they would give the book to the next person. And continue the chain. We chuckled at the thought of how the government will overcome this “barrier”.

The library sought to ensure that everyone involved in the movement reads, studies and understands the farmer’s demands, and the socio-political objectives behind them. Thus, the concept of this library was proposed and implemented with equal vigor to establish a link between the sensitive citizen class—who are trying to connect with all this for agitation—and the agitators.

While they developed their own media, another thing to note here is their protest against the sold-out media that runs the government agenda. They had a clear idea of ​​who was with and who was against them in this battle.

Another feature of the movement is that there was a dialogue between the agitating leaders and the general agitators, allowing them to learn about each other’s perspectives and suggest changes to the leaders. These meetings were held every evening. There are two large tents in this ‘Sanji Sat,’ with carpets laid out. On one side, there were books, and on the other, the posters, pictures and poems created through the cumulative expressions of the people that came there.

There are certain rules of this farmers’ parliament such as no one will stand up, no one will shout while presenting their point, no one will interrupt anybody while speaking, everyone will be allowed time to speak and make their point after which they should pass the microphone.

Are those of us with this movement—created for the people’s benefit—really the voice of the people? What exactly do the people whose voices we highlight, believe? It is crucial to try to understand this, and hence this farmers’ parliament is a significant step forward. This is something that all Indian movements must inculcate immediately.

At the same time, the youth working in this place also decided to run free schools for the children of the villages around the agitation. So a small school was held here every morning. The children were given notebooks, pens, textbooks and food. When asked about the reason behind this, they said, “We used to see these children walking around the site of agitation, most of them are from very poor households, their parents send them here merely to acquire food when they come here, and some come here to collect garbage. But then we thought that we could give them something even better with food and we could provide some basic support. Anyway, schools are closed right now, and this is a good way for them to learn a few things.”

The people have fought back and given a new lease of life to the same human values, ​​which this government has been trying to trample on. They pushed back against the government and steadily evolved their agitation.

In history books, it is written that monarchs used to be opulent with gold, jugs of milk, large grain stores, massive armour, forts, and so on. Moreover, history is also filled with pompous tales of their bravery and descriptions of their generosity. This, however, begs the question: who created this opulence? Who was responsible for storing the milk, growing the grain, stocking the warehouse, and building the fort? Why aren’t they even mentioned in the history records?

When the labour itself is invisible, the labourers are made invisible too. If we forget about the workers, and their labour, we erase the existence of the millions of people who weave together varied pieces to create the quilt of history.

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Many questions and challenges plagued the Indian agriculture sector and farmers, which persist to this day. Globalisation was thought to be capable of solving all of these issues after 1990. In the Indian economy, structural adjustments were made. The grip of LPG (Liberalisation, Privatisation, Globalisation) policies grew tighter.  The market took precedence over agriculture and farmers. It goes without saying that globalisation, that is, the creation of unrestricted communication between finance, capital, goods, services and trade, creates more wealth and makes more and more people happy. But millions of farmer suicides, rising unemployment and rising inflation have broken this illusion.

Today, farmers’ organisations are demanding prices for agricultural commodities based on the cost of production. The peasant movement and its demands must be seen from a global perspective.

Basically, these laws are not unique to India alone. This is a strategic framework for most developing countries deployed by international financial institutions such as the IMF, WTO and the World Bank. Under this framework, the developed countries provide massive benefits to their agricultural sector, while at the same time, developing countries are discouraged from giving subsidies to their farmers. Privatisation of profits and nationalisation of losses is the motto of neo-liberalism and this is what we see in the agriculture sector all over the world.

Today, the farmers are not only leading the movement for the majority of India’s livelihood and food security, but they are also opposing these neo-liberal policies. And so, what is needed today is for the whole world to stand with this movement.

The struggle for barriers on the Delhi border continues today. It’s becoming more intense by the day. This struggle is not straightforward. It is complex. But certainly not incomprehensible.

This is not just a farmers’ movement. This is another step in liberating the country from the clutches of capitalism. This will be a gruelling and arduous battle. But if we remain silent today, we will be the ones to enslave our next generation.

November marks the completion of a year of the historic farmers’ movement. This unparalleled movement brought the problems of Indian farmers and their future to the forefront of public discussion once again. This people’s movement underlined the role of citizens in a democracy. This helped the farmers to regain their prestige in the politics of the country. It facilitated the formation of a bond of unity and collective consciousness in India’s farming community, transcending caste, religion, region, state, and other differences.

If the farmers are to receive true justice, truth, and compassion, this movement must be advanced by any means possible. Otherwise, social media posts saying “human life is precious”, etc. after a farmer’s suicide, or the posts and tweets saying, “why don’t you see the destitute farmer pouring the goods on the road when he could distribute them to the poor?”  from the hypocritical middle-class have no meaning.

We need to get out of the illusion that we are facing a single big hurdle. Today, there is a need to tackle many small obstacles and for that we don’t even have to be at the place of agitation. At the local level, let’s ask questions to councillors, MPs and MLAs; demand answers, educate each other in our homes and communities. Let’s write articles, songs, perform plays, make movies, take photos, and express ourselves.

The movement paved the way for the country’s opposition political parties and organisations to come together to work in support of farmers and ordinary citizens. The movement drew a large number of women and, in particular, rural Indian youth. There is no doubt that this will be recorded as a great movement in the history of the world. A revolutionary salute to all these farmers, to their organisations, to every big and small contributor to this movement.

You adorne the land, wake up the sleeping fields,

Feeder – you feed the whole world.

Then why does hunger torment you and you torment hunger?

Your wealth has been robbed. O! It has been robbed.

Jatta! handle your turban, your dignity.