Thiruvananthapuram: In solidarity with the protesting farmers at Singhu border of Delhi, an indefinite dharna was launched by joint council of farmers’ unions here. The protest was inaugurated in front of Martyr’s column by CPM PB member S Ramachandran Pillai on Saturday.
“This is the fight for the right of life by farmers. Union government will have to concede defeat before the determination of hardworking farmers of the country,” said Pillai, who is also the national vice-president of all India Kisan Sabha, a feeder organization of CPM. “The protest by farmers has spread across the country. Within the last few weeks, two all-India hartals were organized in support of the protest. Lakhs of farmers have surrounded Delhi. Hundreds are joining them every day. Such movements have taken place twice or thrice after independence,” he said.
CPI assistant secretary K Prakash Babu said mandi system in north India helped farmers against exploitation of middlemen. “In villages there were no mandis, farmers are still forced to sell their produce at cheap prices. That is why they have been insisting for continuation of APMCs,” he said. “Around 600 farmers’ unions have now joined the protest. That itself shows how deep-rooted the strike is and how genuine their demands are,” he said.
Every day, a group of volunteers will stage a dharna from 10am to 7pm at the venue. There are plans to organize protest gatherings in each district in the coming days.
Council secretary and CPM state secretariat member K N Balagopal urged all farmers in the state to come out in support of the protesting farmers. “The unilateral imposition of new farm laws would only lead to farmers being treated as slaves. The BJP leadership is only concerned about the welfare of corporate giants like Ambani and Adani,” said Balagopal.