Yes, we had a twin demand – save farmers from a future crisis by repealing the farm laws and save the farmers from the existing crisis by enacting a minimum support price (MSP) Act. Since 1993-94, about 4 lakh famers have committed suicide in the country due to the agricultural crises leading to loss of farmers’ income and the peasants getting entrapped in huge debts. Of them, about 1 lakh have killed self since the time the Modi government took charge in 2014. Modi, when he was the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, had promised an MSP act. The BJP had it in their election manifesto. But they have done nothing since coming to power. We will definitely continue our movement demanding the implementation of the recommendations of the M S Swaminathan Committee. We will decide on the form of that movement later.
How did the movement manage to sustain itself so long?
Such a prolonged, democratic movement on some specific demands is unprecedented, not only in India but also globally, especially when you consider the huge number of participants, direct and indirect. There have been countless efforts on the part of the government and the ruling party to vilify the leadership of the movement. We were called Khalistani, Pakistani, China’s stooges and Maoists and what not! There were conspiracies such as the one regarding disrespect to a tricolor on Independence Day. But we managed to expose all their lies, foil all the conspiracies and leadership remained united.
Differences among the collective leadership have often weakened mass movements in the past. How did this movement’s leadership remain united despite having many differences?