Divided opinion of Pb’s unions confuses farmers

Amritsar: The Punjab farmer unions’ difference of opinion on issues, agenda, and forms of protest has confused both their workers and the general public. The Kirti Kisan Union, Zamhuri Kisan Sabha, and the Border Area Sangarsh Committee distanced from Tuesday’s unified effort agitation here led by Sarwan Singh Pandher’s Kisan Mazdur Morcha (KMM) and the Kisan Mazdur Sangarsh Committee (KMSC) to pursue own plans.
Satnam Singh Ajnala said several farmer unions have long been unaligned with his Zamhuri Kisan Sabha. He said: “While we may share similar views on certain issues, we do not agree on everything. We have own charter of demands and distinct protest programme. This (Amritsar agitation) was not our call, certainly.” Asked why there was a difference of opinion among groups, Ajnala responded: “There’s not much we can do.” He said his group had started with meetings in villages across Punjab for its agitation coming up in Nov.
Kirti Kisan Union state vice-president Jatinder Singh Chinna said: “We have our own priorities, which include the demand for a minimum support price (MSP) for basmati, which any other farmer union of Punjab has not addressed. On Wednesday, we’ll protest at various locations. We share some concerns with the KMSC and KMM, who seek jobs and compensation for the families of the farmers who died in the Delhi agitation. Even the Bharatiya Kisan Union (Ugrahan) has expressed support for the MSP (minimum support price) issue for basmati.”
Kissan Naujwan Sangarsh Committee (KNSC) state president Bachitar Singh Kotla said his group’s issues related to fake milk products and some it its thoughts overlapped with those of the KMM and KMSC. He said: “But it is their programme, not our.” Baljinder Singh, a farmer from Attari, expressed surprise that Tuesday’s protest had failed to unite all the farmer unions. He said: “To me, farmers’ agitation means farmers’ unity, but that’s not the case.”