Friday, January 1, 2021
DISINFORMATION CAMPAIGN In order to discredit this massive united protest in this severe cold wave in the most peaceful and disciplined manner, the BJP and the central government led by PM Modi have embarked upon a vicious disinformation campaign. First, they were levelling the protestors as being Khalistanis, Pakistanis, Chinese agents, urban naxals, tukde tukde gang etc. Then came the calumny that it is the opposition parties who are misleading the farmers. The fact remains that this protest is being organised and conducted by the Samyukta Kisan Morcha, a combine of more than 500 kisan organisations from all over the country with no involvement of any political party. PM Modi is personally leading such a campaign alleging, amongst others, that the opposition parties have all spoken for agrarian reforms in their election manifesto’s but are now opposing for the sake of opposition. Yes, as far as CPI(M) is concerned, we have always sought agrarian reforms as many other parties also did. But what type of reforms? The CPI(M) seeks reforms in order to strengthen India’s food security, produce enough grains to feed our people ensuring their proper nutrition and health, to provide an affordable remuneration to our farmers ensuring a reasonable price for the consumers by strengthening the public distribution system(PDS) and a further development of our agricultural sector. PM Modi’s reforms, however, as contained in the present laws, are to handover Indian agriculture, its markets and its produce to multinational agro-business giants, foreign and domestic corporates, severely jeopardising India’s food security; permitting large-scale hoarding of essential commodities, thus, creating artificial food shortages leading to massive price rise; dismantling of PDS and the provisioning of foodgrains at affordable prices. These laws destroy Indian agriculture while imposing greater miseries on our people. This is why many secular opposition parties have opposed these bills, supported and extend solidarity with the kisan protests and call upon the government to accept these demands and bring in reforms that provide prosperity and welfare for Indian people, not super-profits to foreign and domestic corporates.
