After anti-CAA protests, the ongoing farmers' agitation is an alarming indicator of the rapidly rising anarchist tendencies in India

 

An attempt to bring the nation to its knees, an attempt to establish anarchy in the country - this is what best defines the ongoing farcical agitation, touted as a farmers' movement. So deep-rooted are the nefarious motives behind this anti-government theatre that it can be called anything but an honest protest started and sustained by the farmers against the three farm laws introduced by the Modi government.

The antagonistic manner in which the choreographers of this so-called movement have hijacked the borders of Delhi and around is a grim reminder of the anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) protests that rocked the national capital and several other Indian cities earlier this year, leading to a precarious law and order situation in the country. 

What is being projected as a collective display of dissent by the farmers against the reformist farm laws is in reality a murky yet macro reflection of the dubious Shaheen Bagh campaign, make no mistake, and what Shaheen Bagh was about is no secret at all. 

In the aftermath of the Shaheen Bagh showdown in February-March, the problem for all seasons that seems to have entangled India is the rapid rise of anarchist campaigns masquerading as movements of the Aam Aadmi backed by the self-proclaimed civil society, the wily leftist lobby and several extremist groups.  

image source : hindustantimes.com

Support from extremists 

The farmers' agitation received widespread support from pro-Khalistan outfits like Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) shortly after the Khalistan-sympathising Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau committed a diplomatic blunder by meddling in India’s internal matter through his statement that promised support to the protesting farmers. The ripples were soon visible in several major global cities such as London, Birmingham, Frankfurt, Toronto and Washington DC where Khalistani flags were openly waved and threats of closing the Indian consulates were issued if the demands of the Indian farmers were declined by the Government of India. 

Incidentally, 16 individuals from Canada, the US and the UK were recently chargesheeted by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) for their alleged involvement in sparking a campaign for the creation of Khalistan. Three among those accused were listed as terrorists by the Home Ministry of India. 

The picture could not be clearer. When extremist organisations that nurture the goal of breaking India lend their support to what is being referred to as an “indigenous movement”, it infers that the movement is fundamentally flawed and morally questionable. These protests have rendered a sense of deja vu, refreshing the memories of the anti-CAA protests in which Islamic fundamentalist groups and Hindu-haters massively pumped both spirit and logistics.

The lobby’s shenanigans 

India is witnessing an era wherein anti-administration stirs carrying leftist overtones find abundant appeal within celebrity circles - sportspersons and artists alike. As far as people such as Diljit Dosanjh, Vijender Singh and the like are concerned- one wonders whether they indulged in any intellectual research about the farm laws before recklessly taking a critical stand, merely because of the sentimental value attached to the protest which is predominantly centred in Punjab and Haryana. The celebrity photo opportunity has been used only to add a little bit of flavour to this misguided movement. 

On the other hand, there are self-proclaimed leftist scholars and the so-called civil society members such as Yogendra Yadav who pop out of nowhere and make flagrant attempts at stealing the spotlight by projecting themselves as the voice of the farmers. For people like Yogendra Yadav, who received an absolute drubbing in the 2014 Lok Sabha election and even ended up losing his security deposit, the only way to maintain relevance and stay in the news is to oppose everything under the sun that the Modi government brings to the table. 

It is fair to argue that amid a relentless endeavour to present the commotion at the Delhi borders as purely a farmers movement, the intervention by ill-informed celebrities and self-serving propagandists -coupled with the flabbergasting arrangements at protest sites entailing open theatres, foot massage facilities, makeshift gymnasiums, pizza langar and what not - has stamped the fact that forces conniving to destabilise the government’s developmental and reformist agenda are firing from the farmers’ shoulders. 

This agitation, fuelled by extremists and the anti-Modi political class on one side and the fake civil society and ignorant celebrities on the other, has become a travesty of the idea of ‘expressing dissent in a democracy’. 

image source : deccanherald.com

The nature and motive of the farmers' agitation and the anti-CAA/Shaheen Bagh protest may be different but how they have been carried out and the nature of the forces behind these upheavals is the same. 

This unfortunate and unpleasant inference drawn from the reality of the matter in no way amounts to the disparagement of the farmers of India or their cause. The Government of India has always pledged unconditional support to the Indian farmers and so has the right-thinking citizenry - irrespective of their political or ideological leanings. 

The grace and sensitivity with which the Modi government has tackled the ongoing crisis are commendable. Not a single episode of insult or intimidation of the protesting farmers at the hands of the Government of India has been recorded despite the administration and PM Modi himself found at the receiving end of threats, abuse and curse multiple times during the course of the agitation. On the contrary, the government, while upholding the benefits of the three farm laws, has maintained extraordinary composure and consistently maintained a stand that favours farmers' rights. 

With strong backing from extremist outfits, the leftist lobby comprising of the Congress party, other key UPA members and former allies of the BJP like Akali Dal, as well as pseudo activists, are using farmers as pawns in the game of anti-Modi advocacy in order to fallaciously link draconian attributes to the new laws which were framed to bring about agricultural reforms in the country. 

The concern, therefore, is the frequency at which anarchist campaigns have started to affect India. Camping on city roads and blocking highways to alienate one state from another is fast becoming a norm. This simply cannot be allowed to metamorphose into a sustained phenomenon aimed at destabilising the nation in the name of fake dissent.

The farmers' agitation seems to be far from over although it will ideally die down with time before eventually getting over. But should one anarchist campaign following another become a trend and challenging reformist laws passed by the parliament by holding the government to ransom turn into a habit, it will be detrimental to the stability and development of India. Hopefully, the Modi government is up to the task of putting an end to this menacing trend.