Breakaway farmer unions say they will contest Punjab polls
After a meeting that lasted nearly four hours on Saturday, farm leader Balbir Singh Rajewal was appointed the leader of the outfit, people familiar with the matter said.
Twenty-two farmer unions, that protested against the Centre’s now repealed farm laws under the banner of the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), on Saturday jumped into the poll fray and announced a political outfit, the Sanyukt Samaj Morcha (SSM).
After a meeting that lasted nearly four hours on Saturday, farm leader Balbir Singh Rajewal was appointed the leader of the outfit, people familiar with the matter said.
There is a need to change the system, Rajewal told reporters after the meeting. “A new Sanyukt Samaj Morcha is formed for contesting Punjab Assembly elections. Twenty-two unions have taken this decision. We need to change the system and want to appeal to people to support this morcha,” Rajewal, who heads the Rajewalfaction of the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) said.
The announcement came even as the SKM, the umbrella body of farmer unions that spearheaded the yearlong agitation against the three agriculture laws, distanced itself from the outfit floated on Saturday.
A statement issued by the coordination committee of the SKM reiterated that the farm body is firm on its stand of not allowing any political party to use its banner. “Any attempt to use the name of SKM for elections will constitute a grave violation of Morcha’s discipline,” the statement said.
Earlier in the day, SKM leaders said that the outfit has more than 400 different ideological organisations across the country as its members and is formed only to fight for the issues of farmers.
In a surprise announcement on November 19, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced his government’s decision to withdraw the three contentious farm laws after year-long protests. Days later, both Houses of Parliament passed the Farm Laws Repeal Bill, 2021, on November 29 by voice vote to annul the laws enacted in September 2020.
The SSM will contest from all constituencies in the 117-seat Punjab assembly, said Harmeet Singh Qadian, leader of the Qadian faction of BKU.
Of the 32 farmer unions from the state that participated in the year-long protests under the SKM, 10 have said they will not participate in the elections.
At the media briefing, jointly addressed by representatives of the 22 organisations, the farm leaders said that three more outfits – BKU (Lakjowal), BKU (Dakounda) and Kirti Kisan Union, are likely to join the SSM soon.
BKU (Dakounda) representatives are likely to meet SSM leaders on December 27 in this regard, the general secretary of the outfit, Jagmohan Singh, said.
Rajewal said that the state needs to vote “traditional parties” out of power in the upcoming elections.
“Punjab needs a radical transformation,” he said, urging the people to not “get swayed” by the parties that have been in power in the state for decades.
Unemployment, exodus of the youthand the drugs menace are the issues concerning the state and need to be tackled effectively, another leader said at the briefing.
Addressing reporters, Kadian said that a large number of people were cut off from other political parties for opposing the government’s stand on the farm laws. “Now they want us to give them a platform,” he said, expressing confidence that traders, labourers and farmers will all support the SSM.
Some of the constituents of the political outfit objected to the name, Sanyukt Kisan Party, which was proposed earlier. A consensus on the name was reached at the meeting on Saturday, people familiar with the details of the meeting said.
Another meeting of the outfit to work out an election strategy is likely soon, the people said.
Responding to a question on an alliance with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) ahead of the elections, the SSM leaders said a decision would be taken closer to the polls.
The statement came amid reports that Rajewal was offered a key post by AAP national convener and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal if the party wins the elections.
“Our strategy is that the votes opposed to the Congress, the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Akali Dal should not be divided further. Let us see it is planned,” All India Kisan Federation president, Prem Singh Bhangu, said.
In the 2017 Punjab Assembly polls, Congress won an absolute majority in the state by winning 77 seats and ousted the SAD-BJP government after 10 years. AAP emerged as the second-largest party winning 20 seats. The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) could only manage to win 15 seats while the BJP secured three seats.
Earlier, farmer leader Gurnam Singh Charuni had also announced the launch of his party, the Sanyukt Sangharsh Party, and accused leaders of promoting capitalism in the state.
On November 2, former Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh resigned from the Congress party and announced a new party, Punjab Lok Congress.
