LS Polls: Farmers' agitations in Punjab, Haryana challenge BJP

Chandigarh: The agitation started in February by farmers' organizations in Punjab, and Haryana has a new face during the elections. The Haryana police stopped the farmers' march, demanding legislation of minimum support price for agricultural produce, at the border of the two states. Farmers are still camping on the border. Meanwhile, farmers are on a new strike, focusing on the villages after the Lok Sabha elections were announced.

BJP was put on a spot after the protesters banned the party candidates in many villages in both states. In the villages of Malwa and Majha belts of Punjab, farmers stopped the BJP candidate and his team with black flags on the way. After that, BJP state president Sunil Jakhar approached the Election Commission and lodged a complaint. Jakhar alleged that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Chief Minister Bhagwat Mann are operating behind the farmers. However, farmers' organizations have also approached the commission with a complaint on the same issue. On Thursday, a delegation led by strike leader Balbir Singh met the state Chief Election Commissioner. Their complaint is that when the farmers raise some questions to the candidates and leaders who come to the villages, they attack them using the police and others.

Farmers staged black flag protests against at least four candidates in Haryana. In Sonipet, Lal Badoli, the BJP candidate could not enter some villages due to protests. Ashok Tanwar, who is contesting in Sirsa, Ranjith in Hisar, and Arvind Sharma in Rohtak, have also felt the heat of farmers' anger. There were several protests against the former chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar, who was seeking a win in Karnal. Although Khattar stated that this protest would benefit the BJP, the current political situation in the state paints a different picture. Last week, three independent MLAs announced their support to the Congress and created a crisis of governance, which is also being assessed against the backdrop of the farmers' agitation.

Since march, posters calling for a boycott of the BJP have appeared in Punjab. The first protest was against Amritsar BJP candidate Taranjit Singh Sandhu. Sufi singer Hans Raj Hans, who is competing in Faridkot, also came under the heat of the protests. In 2019, Ravneet Singh Bittu, who won on a Congress ticket from Ludhiana and is now contesting as a BJP candidate, was also barred from the villages by the protesters.

Sixty-seven per cent of the state's population lives in villages. The inability to campaign in these areas has put pressure on the BJP. At present, the wave of farmers' agitation in these two states, where the Aadmi Aadmi wave is raging, is expected to tire the BJP even more.

In 2019, BJP won 10 out of 10 seats in Haryana. Out of 13 in Punjab, BJP won two.