New Delhi, June 9: Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi has once again donned the hat of being a farmers’ leader and rushed to Mandsaur district in Madhya Pradesh to meet families of the farmers who were killed in the police firing. Fully prepared with a brigade of party leaders, Rahul started his journey early on Thursday morning and hopped on to a car, a motorcycle and then walked to reach the violence-hit district.
Even though he knew the repercussions of his move, Rahul defied the prohibitory orders and was arrested under Section 151. Setting the agenda for his ‘suit-boot ki sarkar’ remark, the Gandhi scion hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying, “The Prime Minister can waive loan of Rs 1.5 lakh crore of rich corporates but not of farmers. He can only fire bullets at farmers.”
Rahul attacked the Bharatiya Janata Party governments in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh for not letting him meet the families. “Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh governments are doing their best to prevent me from entering Madhya Pradesh and meeting the families of the farmers killed in Mandsaur. What law of the land says that it is illegal to stand in solidarity with farmers who were killed simply for demanding what is their right?”
Farmers hit the streets protesting over their demands for remunerative prices for their produce and a farm loan waiver not being met. The protest took an ugly turn when five farmers were killed in the police firing.
The move could have been a brilliant stroke had a state leader spearheaded as the BJP will now try to turn it into a Rahul versus Modi battle. Madhya Pradesh Shivraj Singh Chouhan is already witnessing a tough time since the Vyapam scam unfolded but Congress failed to materialise it. The elections in the state is due in 2018 and a state leader is the need of the hour.
Earlier as well, Rahul tried to spearhead the farmers issue a number of times — Bhatta Parsaul visit in 2011, Kisan Rally in 2015, protest against amendment in the Land Acquisition Bill. Even in his campaign for Uttar Pradesh elections, Rahul undertook a 26-day padhyatra from Deoria to Delhi.
Bhatta Parsaul visit: In high drama, Rahul was arrested in May 2011 after he slipped in unnoticed in pre-dawn hours to support the farmers agitating against the Uttar Pradesh’s land acquisition process for an expressway project. Rahul sat with the agitating farmers throughout the day in scorching heat to empathise with their cause.
Four people were killed when farmers and the police opened fire in Bhatta and Parsaul. Farmers were upset over their land being acquired for public projects and then being sold to real estate companies after a considerable mark-up by the then Mayawati government.
The Amethi MP promised farmers to bring a bill that would benefit farmers, labourers and the Congress brought Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act in 2o13.
Kisan rally: After returning from nearly a two-month break in April 2015, a rejuvenated Rahul tried to take on the Narendra Modi government and addressed mega Kisan rally. In a bid to channelise the party workers, Rahul had travelled across the country, addressing mega farmers’ rally and meeting people of different class. The rally had happened on the eve of the opening of the second phase of the Budget session and at a time when the government had repromulgated the Land Acquisition Ordinance.
Leading the partys charge, Rahul raised voice against the amendment in Land Acquisition Bill and called the Modi government a ‘suit boot ki sarkar’. The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2015, sought to replace an ordinance re-promulgated in April which had amended certain provisions of the 2013 act passed during the UPA rule.
Deoria to Delhi Kisan Mahayatra: In October 2016, Rahul was on a historic yatra raising issues of farmers and poor rural masses ahead of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections. He almost covered 141 Vidhan Sabha Assemblies, addressed 26 Khat Sabhas and held 26 road shows. He talked about the pro-farmer approach of the Congress party and reminded people that the party had waived off Rs. 72,000 crore farmer loans during the UPA regime.
But his appeal failed to materialise as the Congress fared poorly in the elections.
Every now and then, Rahul raises issues pertaining to farmers but in a few days, he either forgets about it or fails to take it forward. He had missed many chances earlier as well to showcase his leadership skills and challenge the Modi government. Will the Amethi MP be able to strike a chord with the people or will this one, which many are calling a ‘photo-op’, also get restricted to a mere lip service? Time will tell whether Rahul really is, as is trending on Twitter, a ‘farmers’ leader’.
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