Priti David

Editor

Namita Waikar

Ritayan Mukherjee

Photographs

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Dilli hamari hai! Desh par vohi raaj karega, jo kisan mazdoor ki baat karega!

[Delhi belongs to us! Only those who work for farmers and workers, will get to rule the country!]

This was the
rallying cry of thousands of farmers gathered for the Kisan Mazdoor
Mahapanchayat, held on Thursday March 14, 2024 at the Ramlila Maidan in the
country’s capital, New Delhi. 

“We had come to the Tikri border during the
year-long protests three years ago [2020-21],” a group of women farmers from
Punjab’s Sangrur district told PARI at the Ramlila grounds. “We will come again
if we have to.”

Roads close
to the Maidan were lined with buses that had brought farmers from Punjab,
Haryana and parts of Uttar Pradesh. At 9 a.m., in places on the footpath lining
the roads to the historic maidan, behind parked buses, small groups of men and
women were winding up their breakfast of rotis
cooked on makeshift stoves of wood fire and bricks. 

It was
‘their’ village on this electrifying morning – men and women farmers marched
into the Ramlila Maidan bearing flags. The air reverberated with ‘Kisan Mazdoor Ekta Zindabad [Long Live
Farmer Worker Unity]!’ By 10:30 a.m. the green, woven polythene sheets spread
out on the ground were filled up in an orderly manner; hundreds of farmers and
farm workers sat down in readiness for the Kisan Mazdoor Mahapanchayat (farmers
and workers mega village assembly) to begin. 

Gates to the
Ramlila grounds were only opened in the morning, the authorities saying that
there was water logging on the grounds. Farmer leaders allege that there was a
deliberate attempt to flood the ground with water to obstruct the meeting.  The Delhi Police who take orders from the
Union Ministry of Home Affairs, had suggested that the gathering be limited to
5,000 people. However nearly ten times that number of determined farmers were present
at the grounds. There was also substantial media presence. 

The session
began with a moment’s silence in memory of Shubhkaran Singh, the farmer from
Balloh village in Bathinda district who died on February 21, having suffered a
fatal head injury at Dhabi Gujran in Patiala, after police showered the
protesting farmers with tear gas shells and rubber bullets. 

Dr. Sunilam, the first speaker at the
Mahapanchayat read out the Sankalp Patra or Letter of Resolve of farm union,
Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM). There were over 25 leaders of the SKM and allied
organisations on stage; Medha Patkar was present among the three women leaders
there. Each spoke for 5 to 10 minutes on the need for a legal guarantee for
MSP, as well as other demands.

Farmers have
been raging at the repressive actions of the government, the use of tear gas
shells and lathi charges on protesting farmers in February 2024 at the Shambhu
and Khanouri border between Punjab and Haryana. Read: <a href="https://ruralindiaonline.org/en/articles/i-feel-imprisoned-at-shambhu-border/">‘I feel imprisoned at Shambhu
border’</a>

In response
to the physical barriers and restrictions placed by the government on farmers
entering the capital, a speaker gave a fiery call: “Dilli hamari hai,. Desh par vohi raaj karega, jo kisan mazdoor ki baat karega!
[Delhi belongs to us and only those who work for farmers and workers will get
to rule the country]. 

Leaders of
farmer and labour unions from Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka,
Kerala, Madhya Pradesh and Uttarakhand called out for punishing the current
government in opposition to the ‘Corporate, Communal, Dictatorial Regime.’ 

“After
January 22, 2021, the government has not talked to farmer organisations. When
there haven’t been any talks, how will the issues be resolved?” said Rakesh
Tikait in his speech. Tikait is the National Spokesperson of the Bharatiya
Kisan Union (BKU) and a leader in the SKM.

“At the end
of the farmers’ struggle in 2020-21, the Narendra Modi government had promised
that there would be an MSP [minimum support price] Legal Guarantee at C2 + 50
per cent. That has not been implemented. They had given a guarantee that a loan
waiver would be given, that has not been done so far,” said Dr. Vijoo Krishnan,
General Secretary of the All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS). Read <a href="https://ruralindiaonline.org/en/articles/protests-against-farm-laws-full-coverage/">PARI’s full coverage of the farm
protests</a>.

Krishnan, while speaking from the podium,
mentioned the more than <a href="https://ruralindiaonline.org/en/articles/repeal-of-laws-will-not-bring-my-brother-back/">736 farmers who died </a>during the year-long farmers’ protests, and how the
government had still not fulfilled promises of compensation to their families, and
the dropping of all cases against them. 
“The Electricity Act amendments was to be withdrawn, which has not been
done,” he added, speaking to PARI at the Mahapanchayat.

Later,
Krishnan also brought up the SKM’s opposition to the continuance in office of
the government minister Ajay Misra Teni whose son, Ashish Misra allegedly mowed
down five farmers and a journalist in Lakhimpur Kheri, Uttar Pradesh.

Tikait said
the andolans (protests) going on at
many places across the country “will continue no matter which party gets
elected in the forthcoming general elections, until the issues of farmers and
workers are resolved.” 

At the end of his short talk, Rakesh Tikait called
on everyone to raise their hands to pass the resolutions of the Mahapanchayat.
At 1:30 p.m., the thousands of farmers and workers gathered there raised their
hands along with flags. Turbans, scarves, caps in red, yellow, green, white and
blue stretched as far as the eye could see under the bright sun at the historic
Ramlila Maidan.

Kisan Mazdoor Mahapanchayat held in Delhi

دہلی میں کسان مزدور مہا پنچایت

దిల్లీలో జరిగిన రైతు కూలీల మహాపంచాయతీ

டெல்லியில் நடந்த விவசாயிகள் தொழிலாளர் மகாபஞ்சாயத்து

ਕਾਰਪੋਰੇਟਾਂ ਦੀ ਝੋਲ਼ੀਚੁੱਕ, ਫ਼ਿਰਕੂਵਾਦੀ ਤੇ ਤਾਨਾਸ਼ਾਹ ਸਰਕਾਰ ਖ਼ਿਲਾਫ਼ ਬੁਲੰਦ ਹੁੰਦੀ ਸੁਰ

ଦିଲ୍ଲୀରେ କିଷାନ୍‌ ମଜଦୁର୍‌ ମହାପଞ୍ଚାୟତ ଆୟୋଜିତ

दिल्लीत किसान मजदूर महापंचायत संपन्न

ദില്ലിയിലെ മസ്ദൂർ മഹാപഞ്ചായത്ത്

ದೆಹಲಿಯ ಕಿಸಾನ್ ಮಜ್ದೂರ್ ಮಹಾಪಂಚಾಯತ್‌ ಸಭೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಪ್ರತಿಧ್ವನಿಸಿದ ರೈತರ ಒಗ್ಗಟ್ಟು

किसान मज़दूर महापंचायत में सरकार को याद दिलाए गए उसके वादे

દિલ્હી ખાતે કિસાન મજૂર મહાપંચાયતનું આયોજન

किसान मजदूर महापंचायत मं सरकार ला चेतावत गूँज उठिस अकास

‘कारपोरेट, सांप्रदायिक आउर तानाशाह सरकार’ के खिलाफ खुलल मोरचा

রাজধানীর বুকে সংকল্পে অটল চাষি-মজুরদের মহাপঞ্চায়েত

দিল্লীত কিষাণ মজদুৰ মহাপঞ্চায়ত

Delhi

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Kisan Mazdoor Mahapanchayat held in Delhi

On March 14, 2024 , thousands of farmers and farm workers gathered in Delhi’s Ramlila grounds for a mahapanchayat. The peaceful rally was a reminder to the government of their promises made at the last protest held three years ago, and still not fulfilled

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