Farmers of Ahmednagar village begin five-day protest

Farmers of Puntamba village in Ahmednagar district on Wednesday began a five-day sit-in for various demands, including a law on the minimum support price (MSP) for their produce

Farmers of Puntamba village in Ahmednagar district on Wednesday began a five-day sit-in for various demands, including a law on the minimum support price (MSP) for their produce. They have threatened to launch a statewide protest if their demands are not met by June 5.

Image for representation HT File Photo

“We are in touch with many farmers’ outfits such as Swabhimani Shetkari Sangathana of Raju Shetti, Maharashtra Rajya Shetkari Sangathana of Raghunath Dada Patil, and Shetkari Sangathana led by Anil Ghanwat. Farmer leader Pasha Patel is coming on Thursday to extend his support to our protest,” Dhananjay Dhanwate, sarpanch of Puntamba, told Hindustan Times.

Dhanwate said since they did not belong to any political party, it became easier for them to get support from most of the farmers’ organisations. On Wednesday, Kalpana Inamdar, executive president of Bhrashtachar Nirmulan Samiti, met the Puntamba villagers to express solidarity.

Puntamba is the same village where a farmers’ strike had begun, which was later joined by farmers across the state, forcing the erstwhile Devendra Fadnavis government to declare a loan waiver package in 2017.

Deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar said the state government was ready to discuss the issues with the farmers. “We have been helping the farmers wherever required. We are ready to discuss and resolve their issues.”

As part of the agitation, the farmers have decided to distribute onions, grapes, and watermelons for free among the people on Thursday.

Meanwhile, the protesting farmers received notices from police for allegedly violating the Covid-19 norms. “Police have sent us notices under section 149 of the Code of Criminal Procedure [CrPC], which states that we will be held responsible for any rise in Covid-19 cases and appropriate action will be taken,” Dhanwate said, calling it a tactic to intimidate them.

Section 149 of CrPC empowers police to prevent cognisable offences. “Every police officer may interpose for the purpose of preventing, and shall, to the best of his ability, prevent, the commission of any cognisable offence,” it says.

On May 23, in a special gram sabha, farmers of Puntamba passed a resolution, seeking a law on the MSP, a complete waiver of electricity bills, 10-hour power supply during the day, and a grant of ₹2 lakh per hectare to those sugarcane farmers whose stock was yet to be crushed among other demands.

The law on MSP will make it compulsory for the traders to buy farm produce at the prices fixed by the state government.

“We were expecting a response from the state but they turned a blind eye to our problems,” Dhanwate said.

He said their protest was not against the government but for their demands. “We are not protesting against the Maharashtra government. All this is to get justice for ourselves and the community.”

The sarpanch said they also opposed the import and export policy of the Central government as it was not beneficial for the agrarian community. “We want the policy to be changed and the ban on export to be lifted, which will help the farmers get proper remuneration.”