AAP govts at two ends, BJP-led Haryana in middle: Farmer protest ripe for politics

AS BJP-RULED Haryana put up barricades on the border with Punjab to stop protesting farmers from proceeding towards Delhi, resulting in clashes, lathicharge and lobbying of teargas shells, blame game has begun between it and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

Before they ran into barricades on two border points with Haryana, at Shambhu and Khanauri, the farmers had a smooth passage through Punjab, with the police deployed along the routes making no attempt to stop them. The AAP, which rules both Punjab and Delhi, was quick to underline that while the party stood with the farmers’ demands, the BJP government in Haryana was standing in the way of the Dilli Chalo call given by the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee and Samyukta Kisan Morcha (non-political).

Among other things, the farmers are seeking MSP guarantee for 23 crops, waiver of their debts and withdrawal of cases registered against them during the 2020-21 farmers’ agitation. The Centre, which burnt its hands with that agitation, which lasted a year on Delhi’s borders and ended only after the scrapping of the three farm laws, held two rounds of meetings with farmer leaders in a bid to stall the march, without success.

On Tuesday, as clashes erupted and the Opposition parties criticised the Centre, Union Agriculture Minister Arjun Munda said the MSP law cannot be brought in a hurry and the farmers should come forward for talks with the government.

The BJP would not want the farmer protest to blow up so close to the Lok Sabha elections. One of the reasons for its recent tie-up with the RLD, given its base among farmers, was assuaging residual farmer anger over the last protest. The Centre also sent another message to farmers, across Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, with its