New Delhi: At Delhi’s Singhu border, Lohri celebrations by protesting farmers were marked by hundreds of small bonfires where copies of the three contentious farm laws were burnt and slogans against the Narendra Modi government were chanted.
Around 5 pm, a massive pyre was lit at the border by farmer leaders to burn copies of the new laws and others then started their own small bonfires across the area.
The harvest festival of Lohri is celebrated in Punjab to mark the end of the winter solstice and the beginning of the Rabi season. A bonfire is lit to mark the new beginning and songs of Dulla Batti — the legendary Punjabi hero who led a rebellion against the Mughal Emperor Akbar — are sung.
However, at Singhu, the festival became a part of the protest.
“Dulla Bhatti’s tales have taught us that on Lohri we must take an oath. Lohri also implies the end of evil. That’s why we have decided to burn these farm laws that have been the death knell for the agrarian sector and we are hoping that only good will prevail now,” Jagmohan Singh Patiala, general secretary, Bharatiya Kisan Union (Dakonda), told ThePrint.
Farmer leaders said that burning copies of the laws was also symbolic since their negotiations with the central government have not made any headway yet.
“We have been protesting for almost 50 days at the border yet there has been no outcome despite several rounds of talks. That is why we have decided to burn the copies of the farm laws in protest to celebrate Lohri,” said Gurnam Singh Chandauni, president of BKU (Haryana).
Thousands of farmers have been protesting against the three farm laws at Delhi’s borders for over a month now. While the Supreme Court Tuesday stayed the implementation of these laws, farmers have promised to continue their agitation until they are repealed.
The next round of talks between the Modi government and farmer unions is scheduled for 15 January.
Also read: 5 reasons why Modi govt is finding it difficult to tackle protesting farmers
Lohri away from home
Further into the protest site, away from the media and leaders, several farmers held their own Lohri celebrations, singing songs outside their tractor trolleys and burning copies of the laws.
“We are burning the copies of the farm laws with our Haryana brothers and sisters. This has been the only good side effect of Modi’s laws that Haryana and Punjab who have been fighting for years are now reunited and are fighting against the laws together,” said Kuljeet Singh, a farmer from Punjab’s Hoshiarpur.
“Usually we sing songs of Dulla Bhatti and spend Lohri with our families but today we are singing revolutionary songs in protest against the farm laws here at the border,” said Sonia Mehra from Mohali, who had joined the protest with her two daughters.
While there was a spirit of unity among the farmers, there was also a sombreness in the air. Many of them were cognisant of the fact that they were spending Lohri away from their families because of the government.
“If Modi had scrapped the three laws we wouldn’t have to sit here in the cold and celebrate Lohri. We could have been home with our families and so many of our fellow farmers wouldn’t have died,” said Gurdayal Singh from Gurdaspur.
Not everyone was in a festive mood, however. Away from the din songs and the bonfires, a group of elderly men lay huddled in their makeshift beds in their tractor.
“We aren’t celebrating Lohri because this year there’s nothing to celebrate. If the govt hadn’t passed these laws we would have been at home with our families,” said an elderly farmer from Punjab’s Fatehgarh Sahib, who wished to remain unnamed.
Muted celebration at Ghazipur border
Meanwhile, at Ghazipur border, the celebrations were comparatively sombre and were bereft of any pomp or song and dance.
While protesters did light up several bonfires and burnt copies of the farm laws here as well, celebrations were muted at large and the atmosphere somehow quieter than usual.
On the stage, a choir sang patriotic songs and Faiz Ahmed Faiz’s Hum Dekhenge was a particular hit.
Several farmers said there was no way they would celebrate this year’s “kaali lohri” (black lohri).
“This is no day of celebration,” said Simranjeet Singh, a protesting farmer from Sangrur in Punjab. “This is a sad day, so many of our brothers have martyred themselves for the cause. We dedicate this day to them.”
Subedaar Gurcharan Singh from Lakhimpur Kheri in Uttar Pradesh said the farmers shouldn’t have been here on Lohri in the first place, and it was the government’s fault that they were away from their families.
“This is a big festival for us, we celebrate it with friends and family, but the government has forced us out here in the cold.”
Also read: Panic in Haryana’s BJP-JJP govt as pressure grows within for action on farm laws