SKM to go Ahead with Mission UP, Day of Betrayal to be Observed on January 31

After a day-long meeting, the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) on late Friday evening said it would go ahead with Mission Uttar Pradesh (UP) and ask people not to vote for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) after the Union government failed to act on the promises made on December 9 last year. It maintained that it would observe "Day of Betrayal" across the country on January 31, and large protest demonstrations would be organised at the district and block levels. The constituents expect that this program will be organised in at least 500 districts.

"It should be noted that this decision was taken by the Samyukta Kisan Morcha in its meeting on January 15 to protest against the deceit meted out to the farmers. In these protest demonstrations, a memorandum will also be submitted to the Union government," the SKM said.

The Centre, in its letter to farmers, had promised that it would form a committee comprising farming experts, agriculture scientists and representatives of farmers' unions with clear terms of reference to ensure minimum support price (MSP).

Additionally, it ensured the body that it would ask the state governments to withdraw the criminal cases registered against the farmers during the agitation, compensate kin of deceased farmers who died at the agitation sites on the borders of the national capital and hold a discussion on provisions of Electricity Amendment Act impacting the farming.

"Anti-farmer stand of the government is evident from the fact that even after the decision of January 15, the Government of India has not fulfilled any of the promises made in its letter of December 9. No action has been taken in the last two weeks on the promise of immediate withdrawal of the cases filed during the agitation and compensation to the families of the martyrs. The government has not announced the formation of a committee on the issue of MSP," the SKM added in its statement.

The members of the core committee of the body appeared visibly dismayed as the Centre did not take any action on Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Ajay Mishra Teni, who the farmers have accused to be the mastermind of the Lakhimpur Kheri Massacre in UP, where four farmers and a journalist were mowed under a jeep.

""Mission UP" will continue, through which this anti-farmer regime will be taught a lesson. Under this, a call will be made to the people of UP to punish the BJP for not sacking and arresting Ajay Mishra Teni, the betrayal of the farmers by the Union government and the anti-farmer policies of the UP government," the SKM said.

Ashok Dhawale, national president, All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS), said that January 31 protest would be observed with greater participation across the country, including election-bound states like Punjab and UP. Talking to NewsClick, he said that the preparations are going in full swing in states like Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala.

"We had an online meeting of SKM core committee where members assured us about large scale participation of people in the protest. Our unit committees are already mobilising people in villages, distributing pamphlets in market areas and holding press conferences to make people aware of it. As far as Mission UP is concerned, I have been informed that the intensity of protests will depend on how elections are scheduled there. For example, western UP will see protests, although limited, because the first phase of elections will happen on February 10. In central and eastern UP, the protests will be bigger where we will ask people not to vote for BJP," Dhawale added.

Pavel Kussa, coordinator, Bharatiya Kisan Union Ekta Ugrahan, said that various organisations are mobilising people on their level to participate in the protest. Talking to NewsClick, he said, "The protests will be observed in large assemblies as we did earlier. For this protest on January 31, we will reach out to residents in 2,000 villages. Our members are doing a door-to-door campaign and asking people to join the protest. The code of conduct is not going to deter us from expressing what we feel and how we been portrayed."

Talking to NewsClick over the phone, Dharmendra Malik, media in-charge, Bharatiya Kisan Union (Tikait), said that the farmers are gearing for a nationwide protest on January 31 to remind the Modi government about its betrayal of promises.

"For the time being, we are concentrating on the upcoming programme on January 31. As far as Mission UP is concerned, a formal announcement will be made on February 3. Our units will be observing protests at district and tehsil levels where memorandums will be handed over to district administration officials."

Echoing similar sentiments, DP Singh, veteran farmers' leader from AlKS in Bulandshahar, told NewsClick that the protesters would express their anguish and hand over a memorandum to district administration as large assemblies would not be possible given application of code of conduct.

"The conduct of the BJP and its treatment of the historic movement proved that it was not going to abide its promises. So, we began our mission UP from December 12, the very next day when we returned to our homes from the borders. We knew that once the code of conduct is in force, we would be stopped from campaigning on a large scale. So, we held a series of meetings in Bulandshahar and other districts of western UP and took the message to people that how repealed farm laws allowed entry of agri-business into farming and how BJP will bring back laws if it is voted to power. Interestingly, the people were not only listening to us but also chasing out people who were opposing our assemblies. So, it is a good sign. As far as Vaada Khilafi Diwas is concerned, we will be handing over memorandums for now. We are waiting for operational guidelines on which the campaign will be taken up in the state."

Ashish Mittal, general secretary, All India Kisan Mazdoor Sabha, said there would be assemblies in Allahabad and parts of UP in line with the code of conduct. Talking to NewsClick over the phone, he said that the people are enraged over betrayal by the government and would subsequently express their anguish through these assemblies and dharnas.

"The bone of contention is on the formation of a committee on ensuring MSP to farmers and withdrawing the cases. These are pivotal issues, and the Centre did not Utter a word on its promises. To observe the day, we will hold assemblies as per the code of conduct and ask people not to vote for BJP. As far as Electricity Amendment Act is concerned, the government did not push for it in the winter session of parliament. So, we will see how to go for it."