“A second freedom struggle is being waged in the country. It is being waged against a government that is making laws to handover lands owned by peasants and the whole of agriculture to Indian and multinational corporates. It is being waged in Karnataka too. Unless and until the central and state governments withdraw the black laws it will continue to be waged’ said U Basavaraj, general secretary of the KPRS (affiliated to AIKS) and state secretary of CPI(M).  He was addressing a huge rally at Freedom Park in Bangalore in connection with the ‘Vidhan Soudha Chalo’ organised by Samyukta Horata Karnataka on March 22, 2021, to demand withdrawal of anti-farmer, anti-worker laws.  Samyukta Horata Karnataka is a coalition of practically all peasant and agriculture workers organisations, trade unions, and dalit organisations in the state. The Samyukta Horata Karnataka had also earlier organised Peoples Republic Day Parade on January 26 this year.

This process of the entry of corporates into agriculture began in 1994 when India signed the GATT agreement on agriculture. The agreement had to be implemented by successive governments with a series of measures. The three black laws – one of the measures in this series – hands over all aspects of agriculture to corporates and undermines/destroys peasant agriculture. So, the second freedom struggle is against the rule of corporates being imposed, Basavaraj continued.  It may be remembered the first freedom struggle was waged by peasants against laws enacted by British East India Company in 1793 that took away their land ownership and handed it over fully to zamindars and jagirdars.  It was enacted in Bengal and later extended to British India. Peasants with their own experiences and through a series of struggles understood that unless British rule was ended “land to tiller” could never be achieved. So they participated in the first freedom struggle and succeeded in ending British rule, said Basavaraj, concluding with a confidence that they will succeed in the second freedom struggle also.

Earlier a huge procession of peasants and workers started from Bangalore City Railway Station and culminated in a huge rally at Freedom Park.  It is estimated that over 10,000 peasants and workers participated in the programme. Dr Darshan Pal, Yuddhaveer Singh and Rakesh Singh Tikait – central leaders of Samyukta Kisan Morcha, participated in the Rally. Tikait while addressing the rally gave a call to farmers to sell their crops at Vidhan Soudha. “If the police prevent you, tell them that PM Modi has declared that farmers will get the prescribed MSP anywhere outside APMC also. If they arrest you and take you to police station, continue selling your crops there too. So also if they put you in Jail. In Uttar Pradesh, farmers have started the agitation of selling paddy and sugarcane at DC offices,” he said.  He also gave a call to farmers in Karnataka to lay siege to Bangalore, as farmers in North India had done at New Delhi. Yuddhaveer Singh referred to ‘new drama’ of the BJP of donating one handfull of rice, apparently in a bid to link rice to religion and religion to vote. ‘We need to tell BJP that why one handful, we will give more rice, provided you formulate law to ensure MSP,” he said.

S Varalaxmi, state president of CITU and senior CPI(M) leader was part of the presidium that conducted the proceedings of the rally. Nityananda Swamy, president of AIAWU Karnataka unit and senior CPI(M) Leader, Kodihalli Chandrashekar, KRRS & Hasiru Sene leader, Chukki Nanjundaswamy, another peasant leader, Diwalkar (RKS) and actor Chetan were among those present on the dais and spoke. A book on the anti-famer, anti-worker laws published by KPRS was released at the rally. Agriculture minister B C Patil on behalf of the state government, came to the rally venue to meet the leaders. A charter of demands were read to him and a memorandum was given to him.

The three central leaders of Samyukta Kisan Morcha – Dr Darshan Pal, Yuddhaveer Singh and Rakesh Singh Tikait, also participated in the kisan mahapanchayats at Shivamogga (in western Karnataka) and Haveri (northern Karnataka), earlier to Vidhan Soudha Chalo at Bangalore. Thousands of farmers participated in the two kisan mahapanchayats.