Dimani: Ram Prasad Sharma, a farmer in Dimani in Madhya Pradesh’s Morena district, woke up at 6 am and rushed to a cooperative society in his area to buy a bag of fertiliser. At noon, after spending nearly six hours in a queue, all he got was a torn bag of fertiliser with at least 5 kg missing, he told ThePrint.
But Sharma is not alone. Thousands of small-scale farmers like him in Dimani are by now used to standing in lengthy queues for hours on end to buy fertiliser.
Dimani is the assembly constituency from where Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar of the BJP is contesting the upcoming Madhya Pradesh elections. Tomar is the sitting Lok Sabha MP from Morena constituency.
“What is the point of Narendra Singh Tomar being such a big leader when small farmers like me are struggling for fertiliser and electricity?” asked an agitated Sharma, as he headed back home with the torn bag of fertiliser in his hand.
“I ended up paying the full amount, but we can’t even complain to those running the cooperative society as they simply ask us to go to Morena if we have any issue with the way they deal with things,” he added.
Dilip Singh Tomar, another farmer, told ThePrint that he was forced to sell bajra (millets) at Rs 1,900 per quintal, well below the declared minimum support price (MSP) of Rs 2,500. “The government has not begun procurement of bajra on MSP and we are forced to sell to private dealers,” he said.
As the sun started to set, Dilip Singh headed home and was joined by Kalyan Singh Tomar, both residents of Chandpur village in Dimani.
Kalyan Singh, a guest teacher, lashed out at the Shivraj Singh Chouhan-led BJP government. He told ThePrint that he, and many other teachers like him, had been struggling to get permanent appointment in the state.
“The BJP government says one thing and does the other. We have been struggling to get permanent appointment for many years and, despite doing everything right and fulfilling all criteria, we are still running from one office to the other for the same,” he alleged.
Though there is palpable resentment against Narendra Singh Tomar and the BJP, Gulab Singh Parihar, 71, a member of the Bharatiya Kisan Union, sat at the tea shop at the main village square, explaining to people how the BJP government wanted to bring in three farm laws for the benefit of farmers but “the ‘Khalistani’ mentality of a few derailed the project”.
Also Read: Repeal of farm laws shows how important public consensus is in a democracy
‘Upper hand’ for Narendra Singh Tomar?
Dimani constituency has about 2.5 lakh voters and is dominated by the Thakur community, followed by the Kushwahas and the Brahmins. Members of Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST) communities account for around 50,000 votes, while the Gurjars and Yadavs constitute about 8,000 votes each, according to Election Commission data.
The BJP has pitted Narendra Singh Tomar against sitting Congress MLA Ravindra Singh Tomar, Balveer Dandotiya of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Surendra Singh Tomar of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).
Kirathram Nishad, a small-scale farmer, is unhappy with both the Union minister and Ravindra Singh Tomar of the Congress.
“There has been no development in the region, whether Narendra Singh Tomar is the agriculture minister or Ravindra Singh Tomar is the sitting Congress MLA. Tomar sahab ko khud sochna chahiye, woh itne bade neta hone ke baad, ab yahan aaye hai vidhyaki kaa chunav ladne ke liye. Ye toh wohi baat ho gai ke pehle ghode pe baithte the, aur ab gadhe par baithe hain,” Nishad told ThePrint.
(Narendra Singh Tomar should reflect; he is such a big leader but he is now down to contesting assembly polls. It is like, he was first riding a horse and is now riding a donkey)
Though villagers in Dimani see it as a markdown, a district leader of the BJP said picking the agriculture minister as the candidate from Dimani was the best decision the party could have made.
“Fielding a tall leader like Narendra Singh Tomar means the BJP will definitely win Dimani seat,” said the leader, who is also named Ravindra Singh Tomar.
“Otherwise, the local equations in Dimani were such that Girraj Dandotiya and another candidate, Shiv Mangal, were both fighting for tickets. If either would have been chosen, the other would have worked against him and the BJP would have lost,” the leader added.
Subhas Chandra, a farmers’ leader from Dimani too echoed the sentiment that Narendra Singh Tomar would win the seat, despite signs of farm distress, shortage of fertilisers and issues concerning crop procurement.
“There have been several farm-related issues here, with the problem of fertilisers being the most prominent, but unfortunately, people do not vote on these issues. Voting patterns are mostly driven by caste equations, and in that regard, with the seat being dominated by Thakurs, Narendra Singh Tomar is likely to have an upper hand,” said Chandra.
Caste equations in Dimani came to the forefront after violence erupted in the district on the night of 3 November.
A dispute over loud music being played on a tractor resulted in one Aidal Singh Gurjar being shot dead allegedly by some men from the Tomar community. The Gurjar community demanded action, with the administration bulldozing the home of the accused the next day.
‘People expect leaders to show up at doorstep’
While some in Dimani believe that caste equations could tilt the election in Narendra Singh Tomar’s favour, others are yet to make up their mind and are waiting for the Union minister to show up at their door canvassing for votes.
“No matter who wins the election, our situation hardly changes. But we haven’t made up our mind yet and will wait and see who comes seeking our votes and will then decide accordingly,” Ramroop Verma, a local farmer, told ThePrint.
Narendra Singh Tomar has been holding meetings in various villages but is yet to begin a door-to-door campaign in the constituency.
However, a Tomar loyalist who did not want to be named said public meetings alone will not cut it this time. “The time has gone when people had the craze to watch leaders and would show up at their meetings. Now people expect them to show up at their doorstep,” he said.
According to local BJP leaders in Dimani, sensing that the contest here would not be easy, not only Narendra Singh Tomar but his sons and wife have also set out to campaign in the constituency, targeting women voters as well as youngsters to drum up support.
BSP factor & support for Congress
Though the Tomar community votes are likely to be divided between Narendra Singh Tomar and MLA Ravindra Singh Tomar, BSP’s Balveer Dandotiya has further complicated matters for both the Congress and the BJP.
Balveer was MLA from Dimani from 2013 to 2018 and, according to local villagers, helped and supported many members of the SC community. But he lost the election in 2018 to Girraj Dandotiya, who was then a Congress candidate.
Girraj, a loyalist of BJP leader Jyotiraditya Scindia, switched to the BJP from the Congress in 2020. But he lost the bypoll from Dimani that year on a BJP ticket, and the seat once again went to the Congress who had then fielded Ravindra Singh Tomar.
Not willing to repose trust in Girraj again, the BJP has now fielded Narendra Singh Tomar from Dimani.
Ram Chitra Mohar, a resident of SC-dominated Khuri village in Dimani, told ThePrint that despite losing the elections in 2018, Balveer did not stop visiting the villages. “We have one water pump in the village and it is because of him,” he said.
But while Mohar appreciated the work done by Balveer, villagers were mindful that the BSP’s electoral prospects in Madhya Pradesh are limited.
Most residents of Khuri village said they wanted employment for their children.
“We want good education and employment for our children. We do not want them to spend their lives the way we did, working as labourers for others. We want to vote for a candidate that can form the government. So, our votes will go to the Congress,” said Mohar, pointing to young men returning after a day of back-breaking work at the farm.
Bunty, a 19-year-old who had studied till Class 5 and drives a vehicle to make ends meet, was quick to chime in: “This time, the votes of this village will go to the Congress.”
(Edited by Nida Fatima Siddiqui)
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