Why Indian farmers revolt against Prime Minister Modi

NEW DELHI (AP) – A sea of ​​tens of thousands of farmers riding on tractors and horses stormed Indian historic Red Fort this week – a dramatic increase in their protests, which poses a major challenge to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government.

The AP explains what is at the heart of two months of demonstrations and what it means for Modi’s government.

WHO PROTESTS?

Most protesters are farmers from northern Punjab and Haryana, the two largest agricultural producers. They demand that the laws passed by parliament in September would destroy large corporate farms, destroy the earnings of many farmers and abandon those who own small plots while big business wins. Modi declared the laws as essential to modernize Indian farming.

Due to the demographics of Punjab and Haryana, many of the protesters in New Delhi happen to come from the Sikh religion of India, although their grievances are rooted in economic issues, not religious. Protests are also taking place in other parts of the country among Indians from other backgrounds.

Over the past few weeks, people who are not farmers have also joined in, and the protests gained momentum in November when farmers wanted to march to New Delhi but were stopped by police. Since then, they have promised to hang on to the outskirts of the city until the laws are repealed.

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WHAT ARE THEIR RELATIONSHIPS?

At the heart of these protests is the fear of Indian farmers that the government’s steps to introduce market reforms in the agricultural sector will leave them poorer – at a time when they are already frustrated by their declining influence as the government aims to India to make a center. for global corporations.

The new legislation is not clear whether the government will continue to guarantee prices for certain essential crops – a system introduced in the 1960s to help India increase its food reserves and prevent shortages.

While the government has said it is prepared to ensure that the guaranteed prices will continue, the farmers are skeptical and want new legislation saying such prices are their legal right.

Farmers also fear that the legislation indicates that the government is moving away from a system in which the vast majority of farmers only sell to government-sanctioned markets. They are worried that it will leave them at the mercy of businesses that have no legal obligation to pay the guaranteed price to them anymore.

The government argues that it is designed to give farmers more choice to whom they sell products.

Clauses in the legislation also prevent farmers from having contract disputes with the courts, and that they have no independent remedy other than bureaucrats appointed by the government.

It is the threat to their income that makes the farmers in India, who are mostly small farmers, terrifying: 68% of them own less than 1 hectare of land. In some states, farming families earn on average only 20,000 rupees ($ 271). ___

WHY ARE THESE PROTESTS SIGNIFICANT?

Farmers form the most influential bloc in India – and are often romanticized as the heart and soul of the country.

Politicians have long considered it unwise to alienate them, and farmers are also particularly important to Modi’s base. Northern Haryana and a few other states with a large farming population are ruled by his party.

Since the legislation was passed, Modi’s government has lost two political alliance partners and some of its own leaders are warning him to tread carefully.

The protests against the Modi government are the largest since he came to power in 2014. It comes at a time when the country’s economy has become strong, social disputes have escalated, protests have broken out against laws that some see as discriminatory and the government has been questioned. its response to the coronavirus pandemic.

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WHAT IS THE GOVERNMENT?

The Modi government says the legislation will benefit farmers by increasing production through private investment.

The government offered to amend the laws and suspend their implementation for 18 months, but this did not satisfy farmers who want a full repeal.

The government of Modi also initially tried to discredit the Sikh farmers by rejecting their concerns as religious nationalism. Some leaders in Modi’s party call them ‘Khalistanis’, a reference to a movement for an independent Sikh homeland called ‘Khalistan’ in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

Under Modi, India saw an increasing tide of Hindu nationalism that led to minority groups, mostly Muslims. Some leaders of Modi’s party and India’s freewheel TV channels, which have long favored the government’s Hindu nationalist policies, call the farmers ‘anti-national’, a label often given to those who follow Modi or his policies. criticize.

But such allegations seem to have backfired, further angering the farmers, many of whom are family members serving in the Indian army, police and civil service. Since then, ordinary citizens have also joined them, and the protests have gathered strength.

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WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR MODI?

Although it is a major challenge for his government, Modi’s popularity is still rising, and his approval rates remain high due to his Hindu nationalist policies.

Many agricultural experts agree that the Indian agricultural sector needs reforms, but they question the way in which the Modi government enacted the laws and the corporate involvement in agriculture.

“Leaving farmers at the mercy of the markets would be like a death sentence for them,” said Devinder Sharma, an agricultural expert who has been campaigning for equal income for Indian farmers for the past two decades. “We talk about people who feed us.”

Critics also highlight what they see as the Modi government’s tendency to implement reforms without creating consensus. When the laws were passed in parliament, Modi’s party refused to expand the debate on it despite repeated requests from the opposition. It also denied that the laws were referred to a special committee, where members could discuss them further.