A 70-year-old cancer patient who entered his 22nd day on Tuesday”Death fast“, the farmers’ movement for legal MSP is slowly stirring into life again.
Jagjit Singh Dallewal sleeps on a makeshift bed under a thick blanket in a thermocol-lined tent to ward off the cold in Khanuri, on Punjab’s border with Haryana. To reach him, one has to cross a five kilometer stretch of around 200 trolleys which have been parked on the road along with a stream of political leaders and high officials for a few days. Farmers from all parts of Punjab have come to show solidarity with Dallewal and their numbers are increasing.
Many carried posters with Dallewal’s picture,’ the messageAssi Jagjit Singh Dallewal Han (We are all Jagjit Singh Dallewal).
Many attempts to enter Haryana en route to Delhi have been forcibly stopped by farmers parked at Khanauri. The government has not backed down from its stand that it is not possible to give legal guarantees to MSPs as well. However, Dallewal says that he will not stop the fast.
Farmer leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal on hunger strike at Khanuri border crossing in Punjab and Haryana. (Express Photo Gurmeet Singh)
His voice raised as he calls the legal MSP “a must”, he says he feels more motivated after the 22-day fast. “War ar-par di ladhai hai (It’s a do-or-die fight this time),” he says The Indian Express.
Dallewal, who is part of the three-decade-old Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU)-Sidhupur, participated in the year-long farmers’ movement on the Delhi border in 2020-21. He later parted ways with the United Kisan Morcha (SKM), which led the protests, over his decision to contest the elections, and is now the convener of SKM (Non-Political).
This is his sixth hunger strike, the 70-year-old says – and already his longest.
Gurmeet Singh (58), a farmer from Chottian village in Muktsar district, who is now camping on the Khanuri border, says that initially there were very few protesters. “Then, on the night between November 25 and November 26, a few hours before he was to begin his fast, Dallewal ji was taken out by the Patiala police and forcibly admitted to a hospital. This Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government’s Dallewalji was discharged on November 29 only after the farmers protested the action… After that the number of farmers here started increasing day by day.
Now, the protest site is full of years-long strike, gas stoves for making tea or food, nylon wires strung between clothes drying trolleys, temporary bathrooms made of aluminum sheets and anchors. From the villagers across the district.
In the absence of any speech, Kirtan is performed daily for two hours to protect the soul. The amount of water used is strictly regulated as it has to be drawn from a distance of about 6 km.
The doctors have informed the media about the health condition of farmer leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal who is on hunger strike. (Express Photo Gurmeet Singh)
The line of trolleys reaches a stage, behind which is the camper where Dallewal is staying. About 20 youths are standing guard outside with sticks.
Among them, 23-year-old Karandeep Singh and 34-year-old Gurpiar Singh, both hail from Dallewal’s native Faridkot district. They let visitors in only with permission from Dallewal. Shoes and socks should be left outside, masks should be worn, and a generous amount of hand sanitizer applied before one enters to ensure that no infection is transferred to the dollwall. There are two more attendants inside.
Apart from a covered dustbin, Dallewal’s tent houses hair oil, combs, toothpaste and a bar of soap, with an air conditioner mounted on one wall. A battery-charged bulb gives off a dim light.
Dallewal says that in the early days of the bandh, he used to address the protesting farmers regularly, but now the weakness is bothering him. His aides claim he has boiled water, “about 2 liters a day”.
For the past five days, one of his attendants has been hammering down the message “Why MSP is important” to farmers. In one of these, which he shared with The Indian Express, Dallewal claimed: “If there is a legal guarantee of MSP for all crops then we can move towards diversification.”
Crop diversification is seen as the primary solution to Punjab’s agricultural crisis, an over-reliance on rice that has led to a drastic decline in its water table.
Near Dallewal’s tent, a group of women from Bhatinda’s Phul village have just arrived and settled, Charanjit Kaur, 60, is busy making an earthen stove. “Assi modi de satae han (We are victims of PM Modi),” says BKU member Karamjit Kaur.
Vigilante youth security at the entrance where hunger striking farmer leader Jagjitsinh Dallewal sits. (Express Photo Gurmeet Singh)
Just before the Haryana border, farmers have parked tractors and put up barbed wire to prevent any of them from crossing on their own. “Sometimes, some people get angry with the government’s approach,” says the BKU member.
Visitors to Dallewal in the past few days have included Sikh religious leaders, Tarsem Singh (father of alleged Khalistani activist and jailed Khadoor Sahib MP Amritpal Singh), and leaders of Congress, Shiromani Akali Dal and AAP.
On Thursday, Dallewal will meet his first BJP visitor, senior farmer leader Sukhmandar Grewal. Asked about his surprising decision, Grewal said The Indian Express: “His demand should be heard and the Center should start talks with him soon.”
Aam Aadmi Party chief spokesperson and Anandpur Sahib MP Malwinder Singh Kang, who visited Dallewal on Monday, handed over the money to the Centre. “The Punjab government is trying to ensure that the Indian government opens the door for talks with the farmers. We are worried about Dallewal ji’s health. Nothing could be more unfortunate than not allowing the farmers to go to the national capital, Delhi.
Concerned about the situation, the state government has ensured that a team of doctors from Rajindra Medical College and Hospital, Patiala, conducts daily inspections of her. For his prostate cancer, Dallewal claims only Ayurvedic treatment.
Ratan Singh, a member of BKU, says that there is a person guarding him day and night to prevent Dallewal from returning again. “Almost a thousand people roam the front site even at night.” Ratan Singh adds that many of them asked Dallewal to call off the fast, saying his life was important “for many struggles to come”. “But he says if by his sacrifice the farmers of Punjab can get their rights, he is ready for it.”
“MSP is only one demand… Late paddy harvesting, crop pest attack, lack of fertilisers…”, says another BKU member Ranjit Singh.
Why should you buy our membership?
You want to be the smartest in the room.
You want access to our award-winning journalism.
You don’t want to be confused and misinformed.
Choose your subscription package