India- Dalit Agricultural Labour Community march

By Harsh Thakor

HAIL THE DETERMINED RESISTANCE OF THE DALIT AGRICULTURAL LABOUR COMMUNITY IN PATIALA ON MARCH 4TH MARCHING INTO THE VENUE OUTSIDE THE PUNJAB ELECTRICITY BOARD LIKE AN ARMY AND SHIMMERING THE LIGHT OF LIBERATION PROVES THE GREAT REVOLUTIONARY POTENTIAL OF THE DALIT AGRICULTURAL COMMUNITY AND THE METICULOUS CLASS WORK OF THE PUNJAB KHET MAZDOOR UNION

Salute the glorious rally held by Punjab Khet Mazdoor union illuminating the flame of revolutionary struggle.Although only around 2500 people it was qualitatively a great success,resembling an army marching in..It took place a little over a month after it held it's 6th state level delegates conference.Demands were raised for land plots, cancellation of debts,implementation of 1/3rd of panchayat land awarded to a dalit family scrapping of false electricity bills,employment promised by manrega scheme of minumum of 100 days of work ,adequate hospital and education facilities and for proper houses .I was privileged to be present in the rally and march.Even the issue of how Indo-Pak war hysteria was promoted by ruling class BJP to divert people from genuine issues was touched upon.I greatly praise the painstaking preparations of the organization a and was pleased with the participation of so many women.Thus the PMKU has like a river flowing continued the thread of it's painstaking class-mass approach.The dalt activists vociferously raised slogans reverberating the wrath within them against the opressive ruling classes and their agents.That such a force could be mobilised in the very heart of a big city like Patiala which is far from the Malwa regions speaks tribute of the meticuluos groundwork of the PMKU.in educating the agricultural workers and mass line practice.

The rally was adressed by Laxman,Singh Sewewala,(secretary)Zora Singh Nasrali,(President)Harmesh Malri,(finance secretary)Major Singh Kolke,Balwant Singh Baghapurana,Harbhagwan Singh Munak,Gurpal Singh Ninghal and Malkeet Singh.After ever speech a series of revolutionary slogans were raised.The event concluded with a short March at the end of the road where the police barricade was positioned.

Such a protest was a fitting reply to the sheer apathy of the ruling Congress govt which did not step a toe to implement any of the genuine demands promised to the agricultural dalit community.There have been several suicides of dalit labourers in recent months.

The rally was aided by volunteers from the BKU(Ugrahan),the Naujwan Bharat Sabha and the Punjab Students Union(Shaheed Randhawa group)Significant that iot gained the moral support organisations of the landed peasantry,students and youth.Also a small contingent of the democratic teachers front participated.

Such a protest is a component of the dalit revolutionary movement as a whole with struggles spearheaded also by the Zameen praprti sangharsh committee and the Krantikari Pendu Mazdoor Union which are sowing the seeds for distribution of land plots in the Sangrur region.The ZPSC Sangrur-Patiala has raised a series of Pol-Khol ralies raising the burning issues in 150 villages in Sangrur,Patiala ,Mansa and Barnala.2 major rallies were held in in Jhaneri and Ghabdan villages.Just a moth ago the ZPSC led an impactful bandh in the same town of Patila l where the PMKU just staged it's rally.KPMU has lead a series of land distribution movements in around 50 villages.and led many protests for cancellation of electricity bills.It has undertaken a ustained campaing for distribution of 1/3rd of panchayat land .The significant mobilisation of women is a very positive aspect in these rallies.

Only by building a sustained movement of agricultural workers accounting for the factor of caste with class can the seeds be sown for a genuine united front to be formed with the landed peasantry.The semi-feudal agricultural condition still prevailing must be exposed.

The Punjab govt is trying to woo the agricultural labourers before the national parliamentary elections by making false promises.The govt betrayed the people by only providing 10 homeless families plots in one village. This was because lot of the promised land for distribution still ly in the hands of the landlords.In the run up to the Lok Sabha elections,the panchayat department on Tuesday issued a letter to al the deputy comisioners to initiate the process of alotting 5 marla plots among the poor.In the 1st phase it was proposed to give 5 marla plots to 10 beneficiaries from each village.The proposed plots will be carved out of land belonging to panchayats.,which will need to pass resolutions to this effect. "In most of the villages the panchayats are directly on indirectly run by feudal lords.There is less possiblity of passing a resolution by them to allot panchayat land to Dalit Families," said Zora Singh Nasrali, president of the PMKU.