Ahead of the Kisan Long March, called for by All India Kisan Sabha, Maharashtra police took into custody around 200 farmers, as well as the AIKS General Secretary Ajit Navale. The farmers were set to march from Nashik to Mumbai, starting today, up till February 27.
NewsClick reported that 200 farmers, who were reaching Nashik from Dhule to participate in the Farmers’ Long March, had been taken into custody by the Dhule district police on February 19. The report added that on February 15, leaders of the All India Kisan Sabha including Maharashtra general secretary, Ajit Navale, were booked for taking part in farmers’ meeting in Ahmednagar despite having proper permission from the collector and police.
The report also quoted a police officer saying, “They are booked under Section 144 and 188 of IPC and relevant sections of the Mumbai Police Act for unlawful assembly of people.”
Dr Ajit Navale, however, said, “We had given a letter to the collector’s office a day before the meeting was held. In that letter, we had told clearly that this will be a closed-door meeting and not a public sabha. We were not told at that time to not go ahead with the meeting. The next day, we had our meeting at the Sainik Kalyan Hall near Ahmednagar Collector’s office, where over 1,500 farmers were present. “ He added, “Our basic question was why did they not take any action when the meeting was going on in a hall which is within the range of a km from the collector’s office. The police had even visited the venue when the meeting was going on.”
AIKS had set three key objectives for the Long March: One, to “take the BJP-led state government to task for its poor implementation of the demands that it had conceded in writing last year.”
Two, to “focus on the grim drought that has severely affected half of Maharashtra this year. The response of the state government to the plight of the people hit by drought has been scandalous. The eight districts of Marathwada region are the epicentre of this drought, although large parts of Vidarbha and other regions are also affected. “
And three, to “denounce the Narendra Modi-led BJP central government for its callous and ‘jumlebaj’ attitude to farmers and agricultural workers.”
Their statement, titled Maharashtra: Aiks To Begin Second Massive Kisan Long March From Nashik, also added, “The BJP government’s undermining of MNREGA, the lifeline for agricultural workers, is only too well known. Its forcible land acquisition policies have been and are being resisted by the peasantry.”
Social media took to condemning police interference. The Communist Party of India (Marxist) Gen Sec, Sitaram Yechury, tweeted, “The pain and agony of suffering farmers cannot be suppressed by the BJP governments.”
This is the second long march in the state. In 2018, around 35,000, mostly landless and tribal, farmers had taken to the streets demanding basic amenities. Not much has changed for the farmers in a year, however. The CPI(M) tweeted that farmers were stopped and taken into custody, at several places on the outskirts of Nashik. AIKS too tweeted that people were battling the hurdles and reaching out to Nashik, despite BJP-led government’s efforts to keep the march from taking place.
