The farmers’ protest entered the fifth day on Monday even while the protesters threatened to block all five entry points to the national capital. Commuters have been put to great inconvenience but the farmers too have reached the end of their tether. The Central Government has said that it will talk to the farmers only if they move to the Burari ground but farmers are adamant that they will not accept any conditionality to the talks. The protestors had a meeting on Monday evening to discuss their next course of action.
What’s angering the farmers is the Prime Minister’s unwillingness to listen to their point of view. Instead, the Prime Minister is trying to explain the ‘benefits’ of the Farmer’s Act. The farmers feel slighted that the PM who is no farmer is explaining to them about an Act they consider adversarial to their cause. Interestingly, the farmers had given a 60 day notice saying they would proceed to Delhi if the NDA Government does not listen to their grievance and only when their pleas fell on deaf ears did they march to Delhi.
Home Minister Amit Shah has offered to hold talks with the farmers on December 3 but only if they move to the Burari Grounds and do not obstruct the highways to Delhi. It is difficult to understand why December 3 has been scheduled for talks when a crisis is brewing. On Monday a meeting of over 30 farmer groups was held to discuss Amit Shah’s offer for talks. However the thousands of protesters had refused to budge and spent another night in the cold at the Singhu and Tikri border points. Their representatives had said that Amit Shah’s condition that they shift the protest is not acceptable and claimed Burari ground is an “open jail”.
Over the last five days, thousands of farmers, braving water cannons, tear gas and barricades of the Haryana police, have reached the borders of Delhi. While some of them have managed to enter the city, the rest are sitting at the border areas, saying they are ready to do what it takes to see the end of the three farm laws passed by parliament earlier this year. The farmers’ protest has affected supply of vegetables to Delhi and other states leading to rise in prices.
What is of greater concern is that the country is in the midst of the Covid pandemic and farmers are without masks and also exposed to the cold. This could lead to serious consequences. It remains to be seen if the NDA Government is willing to roll back the Act or will stick to its guns. Who will win this battle of nerves will be revealed post December 3 but in the meantime the NDA seems to be on the back foot.