Mandsaur (Madhya Pradesh): Nearly two years since the violent farmers’ unrest in Mandsaur that put the spotlight on agrarian anger across the country, not much seems to have changed. Or, at least, so believe the families who lost their beloved in the protest.
“The agitation, and my son losing his life, all seem to have been such a waste. Things remain just as they were for farmers,” says a visibly-drained Dinesh Patidar, whose 17-year-old son Abhishek died during the agitation.
The electorally-significant agrarian community, and the way it tilts, is going to be an important determinant in Madhya Pradesh in the ongoing Lok Sabha polls.
In June 2017, a massive protest broke out in Mandsaur when farmers took to the streets demanding a better price for their produce. Things turned violent and six protesters were killed, allegedly when security forces opened fire.
A Madhya Pradesh government-appointed inquiry commission later gave a clean chit to state police as well as the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel deployed to curb the agitation, saying they were forced to open fire in the face of an armed mob.
Almost two years since, depressed prices of produce remain as much an issue for farmers as they were then. Farmers say no sustainable solution has been found to address their biggest concern, irrespective of the political party in power.
Ousting a three-term Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in the state, the Congress came to power in the assembly polls late last year, appointing Kamal Nath as Chief Minister.
Among its most prominent campaign promises was a loan waiver of up to Rs 2 lakh for farmers, with the party vowing to deliver on this count within 10 days of assuming charge.
In the run-up to the Lok Sabha elections, both parties have gone on to try and pander to the agrarian community, with more promises and assurances.
For families of the Mandsaur agitation victims, however, none of these assurances matters, as they underscore how disillusioned they are with political parties this election season.
Also read: Swaminathan proposals, the crux of farmers’ tussle with the Centre over MSP
‘Things remain the same’
Dinesh Patidar, who earlier lived at Barkhedapanth village but shifted to Pipaliyamandi a few months ago, says the situation remains grim.
“We are still getting low prices for our produce. No government has quite helped us,” he adds.
“We got Rs 1 crore as compensation after our son died, and my older son was given a government job, but what about other farmers? Every political party just makes promises for votes, nobody really bothers to change things,” he says.
On the day of the stir, Dinesh says, his son, who had just passed Class XI, informed him he was going for the protest. That was the last he saw of him, he adds.
“I asked him, do you even understand what a protest means? He told me other farmers had explained the situation and he wanted to register his presence against the injustice,” he says.
When Mandsaur goes to the polls in the last phase of the Lok Sabha election on 19 May, Dinesh says, he will vote. Even so, he adds, he is “equally disillusioned with both parties [Congress and BJP]”.
The family of Kanhaiya Lal, who also died during the agitation, feels the same pain. His older brother Jagdish Patidar, a resident of Chillod Pipaliya, says the crux of the protest — demand for higher prices for their produce — remains unresolved.
“Prices still remain low. What has changed? We lost a family member and, still, nothing happened,” he adds.
“Every political party thinks only of its interests, its votes. We want the recommendations of the Swaminathan committee report to be implemented, this is what my brother died fighting for,” he says.
However, his brother’s death has forced Jagdish to change his political preferences.
“We were always BJP supporters. But my brother died because of that government. How can we ever back them now?” he says, “I will support the Congress this time. We hope they will do something.”
Kanhaiya, who was around 35 when he died, has two children in their early teenage.
The families say they still await “justice” and hope that the Congress government, which has so far not taken any action against security personnel who opened fire that day, will do so.
Also read: Madhya Pradesh CM Kamal Nath approves farm loan waiver up to Rs 2 lakh
‘Not loan waivers, but right prices’
Both families, however, emphasise the same point — that loan waivers or cash transfers to farmers are no solutions. What they need, they say, is the “right price for their produce”.
“Nobody in my family — extended or otherwise — has yet received the promised loan waiver,” says Jagdish. “But that isn’t even the point. We demanded a lasting solution — higher prices — for which our sons died. That has to happen. The other promises are no solution,” he adds.
This is a sentiment echoed by farmers across the spectrum. At the massive wholesale mandi in Mandsaur, farmers from several neighbouring districts make the same point.
Most say they are yet to receive the loan waiver from the Congress, and several claim they do not know details of BJP’s Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojana — they need neither, they add, just the right prices for their produce.
There is a mix of BJP and Congress supporters. The former, impressed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “national security approach” as well as rural schemes. The latter, believing the Congress is “more pro-farmer”.
They, however, are unanimous in one demand — better prices.
“Loan waivers, political parties are all one aspect — but just give us the right prices and that is all we want,” says Mann Singh Chouhan of Ratlam district.
“We’d rather have that than the doles. This gives us a long-term and more beneficial solution.”
The farmers, however, do add that the prices of certain crops —especially garlic — have gone up in recent months, mostly “after the Model Code of Conduct came into force”. A lower bumper yield this season as against previous years could also be a factor, they add.
Also read: Govt’s final move to appease farmers — Rs 6,000 every year for those with 2-hectare plots
The politics
For both the BJP and the Congress, farmers are a crucial votebank they want to tap into. Efforts are being made during rallies by senior leaders, along with ground-level campaigns by party workers, to portray the parties as “pro-farmer”.
Kanhaiya’s mother Dehu Bai had turned “delirious and disoriented” after his death but is now slowly recovering, her family says. His wife Sumitra, however, still seems to be in shock. Her face covered with a veil, she refuses to answer any questions or indulge in conversation.
The only time both nod enthusiastically is when asked if they would go to cast their vote. Irony lives on.