The BJP has decided to take up farmers’ issues to reach out to Bengal’s rural folk in the run-up to the 2024 parliamentary elections.
As a first step, BJP peasants’ wing Kisan Morcha will from Monday stage demonstrations outside the offices of sub-divisional officers across the state to highlight problems being faced by Bengal farmers.
“This state government has always claimed to represent peasants. However, even after coming to power for the third consecutive term, farmers are being forced
into distress sale of their produce. The Kisan Morcha will launch movements from Monday to protest against the plight of the farmers in the state,” Bengal BJP chief spokesperson Samik Bhattacharya said.
The party has also lined up other programmes, including holding meetings with farmers in the districts to boost the membership of the peasants’ wing.
A senior Kisan Morcha leader said a delegation of farmers would meet governor C.V. Ananda Bose on Wednesday to raise the issues of the farming community.
Bengal has around 72 lakh farmers and despite suffering electoral reverses since 2011, the CPM’s All India Kisan Sabha has been actively associated with the peasants’ organisation.
Responding to the BJP’s drive, Trinamul leaders said a party that had installed barbed fences to thwart protesting peasants in Delhi had no right to raise their voice in support of the farming community.
“The farmers know how the Amit Shah-led Delhi police behaved with the protesting farmers during the movement in Delhi. The Narendra Modi government has reduced allotment for fertilisers for Bengal. This is nothing but a political gimmick of the BJP ahead of the polls,” Trinamul spokesperson Tanmoy Ghosh said.
Amal Halder, the state secretary of the All India Kisan Sabha, said the Modi government had stopped exporting quality rice produced in East Burdwan and Hooghly.
“The BJP government at the Centre has stopped the export of Golap Bhog produced in Bengal to give an advantage to Basmati rice that is produced in north India. Our farmers are well aware of the BJP’s anti-farmer policies,” Halder said.