Farmer leader Dallewal’s condition worsens as his hunger strike enters 41st day

The condition of farmer leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal, on fast since 26 November 2024, worsened on Sunday as per reports from Khanauri.

Dallewal has refused to be transferred to a hospital or break his fast till the government gives an undertaking to implement the recommendations of the parliamentary standing committee that has advocated legal guarantee of minimum support prices to the farmers.

The standing committee report was tabled in Parliament on 17 December 2024.

Farmers have been agitating at the Khanauri-Shambhu border since February 2024, and once the government foiled the proposed march to Delhi on foot by 101 farmers, Dallewal decided to escalate the agitation by launching a fast-unto-death.

On Friday, the day before he had convened a Kisan Mahapanchayat at Khanauri, Dallewal had agreed to undergo blood, urine and ECG tests. Once the reports confirmed that his vitals were stable, he was carried to the stage in an ambulance around 2 pm. He addressed the assembled people, estimated at 50,000 to 1 lakh, for 11 minutes before being taken away.

Dallewal has been kept in a glass cubicle which is heavily guarded with over 100 tractor-trailers welded with each other and around 700 volunteers guarding the place. This has been done to prevent a repeat of the 26 November incident in which police had barged into the tent at Khanauri and taken him to a hospital in Ludhiana on the first day of his fast.

In his address on Saturday, Dallewal vowed to continue the agitation until the government provided a legal guarantee on the minimum support price for crops. During his 11-minute address, Dallewal appealed to farmer outfits in other states to launch a similar fight for the MSP to send across a message to the Centre that it wasn’t Punjab’s struggle alone.

Dallewal had severed ties with the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) in 2022 after it had decided to participate in elections. He had then formed SKM (Non-Political) with his own union Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (KKM) spearheading it.

The rift between the two groups appeared to have widened as the SKM held a parallel protest rally with the same demand at Tohana, 30 Kms away. SKM leader Rakesh Tikait’s sound byte to the media insinuating that Dallewal’s protest was encouraged and sustained by the government to sow seeds of rift among the farmers has kicked up a fresh row. Tikait also accused the government of painting Sikhs as villains.

Sarwan Singh Pandher, coordinator of the SKM (Non-Political) and the KMM, condemned Tikait’s remarks as “unfortunate and unwarranted”. “We are engaging in talks with the SKM (All India) and seeking unity. Leaders like Tikait should avoid making divisive comments. Moreover, this is not about caste or community. The ruling dispensation is targeting all those opposing government policies,” Pandher said.

Farm leader Kaka Singh Kotra downplayed the impact of the parallel protest at Tohana. “Why react to Tikait’s comments? The massive turnout at Khanauri has shown where the people’s support lies,” he said.

DKM (Non-Political) leader Gurmeet Singh Mangat described Tikait’s comments as unfortunate. “Nearly 34 farmers have lost their lives in the current protest spanning nearly 11 months, including 22-year-old Shubhkaran Singh who was shot dead. Additionally, 500 farmers have been injured and 70-year-old farmer Jagjit Singh Dallewal is on indefinite fast for the past 41 days. These sacrifices show the strength of our cause,” Mangat added.