New Delhi: The farmers’ protests for almost a month now, has been redefining positions taken by political parties. With the protests- demanding nothing short of withdrawing the three new agri laws- growing in strength with more farmers beyond Punjab and Haryana headed towards the Delhi borders to join forces, many of the ruling BJP’s official and unofficial allies are switching sides to support the farmers.
If SAD, BJP’s oldest ally, was the first to walk out of the ruling regime, right after the contentious farm bills were passed, it was Rajasthan ally Hanuman Beniwal, who heads the Rashtriya Loktantrik Party (RLP) who decided to come out in support of farmers on Saturday, and resigned from three parliamentary committees as a mark of protest. The Jat strongman and Nagaur MP announced that he will take a call on quitting NDA on December 26, when he plans to march towards Delhi with two lakh supporters. He has been supporting the farmers' agitation and demanding that the laws be withdrawn, while urging the Centre to implement recommendations of the Swaminathan commission on farmers.
BJP’s Haryana ally, deputy chief minister Dushyant Chautala-led Jananayak Janata Party (JJP), is precariously perched on the fence. The 11-month old party is waiting to see which way things go. As farmers from his state join the protestors, many of his party’s MLAs came out in support of the farmers. So far with a core support base in the rural peasantry, JJP leaders are insisting that MSP factor be included in the legislation. But the party is under tremendous pressure to come out in support of the farmers.
While RLP or SAD may not be crucial for any BJP government to survive, a decision by JJP to walk out of the alliance could bring down the Haryana government. For JJP, with most of its support base up in arms against the farm laws, taking a side also has to do with its own future.
The most interesting cases have been that of two parties – Telangana Rashtriya Samithi led by Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekhar Rao (KCR) and the ruling YSRCP in Andhra Pradesh led by chief minister Jaganmohan Reddy. Till recently, both the parties have acted as allies for the Narendra Modi government inside and outside Parliament.
The agitation against the farm laws however saw Reddy join the bandwagon of mostly opposition parties at the last moment, supporting the bandh called by farmers earlier in the month, with an obvious message that going against the farmers’ interests could cost him politically. On his part KCR reacted earlier to the farm bills, when he was a surprise entry on the opposition list against the bills when they were being passed in the House. Clearly, BJP may stick to the reform bills, but its allies are sensing trouble in going against the farmers.
Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik-led Biju Janata Dal (BJD) has also been seen as often siding with the ruling BJP, rather than Congress or other opposition parties, while remaining unattached to either side. When it came to the farm bills, Patnaik’s party clearly sided with the farmers, against the Centre.
As for most of the opposition parties- Congress, Trinamool Congress, DMK, SP, BSP, Shiv Sena, NCP, Left parties- they have had to make their stands audacious to be seen with the farmers, even if predictably so.