On 14th February, farmer leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi and said the government would agree to anything if his popularity graph went down. Speaking to The Unmute, Dallewal cited a scuffle between police and protesters and claimed it was a sign of the downfall of PM Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ‘s tenure.
He further added that there is no democracy in the country as protesters were stopped from marching towards Delhi. Citing the barricades raised by the police and administration in Haryana, he claimed the police attacked the protesters, and several protesters were injured, but no one pelted stones at the police. However, there have been videos of protesters indulging in stone pelting at police personnel, leading to injuries.
Dallewal claimed BJP promised to implement Swaminathan’s recommendations in the manifesto
Dallewal claimed that the BJP promised to implement the recommendations of the Swaminathan Commission on Minimum Support Price (MSP). He claimed that despite the promise in the manifesto, BJP stepped back from implementing it. In reality, there was no specific mention of the Swaminathan Commission report or recommendations in the BJP’s manifesto from 2014. The “Agriculture – Productivity, Scientific and Rewarding” section of the manifesto mentioned that the party would “take steps to enhance profitability in agriculture, by ensuring a minimum of 50% profits over the cost of production, cheaper agriculture inputs and credit.”
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also suggested a similar formula that the Swaminathan Commission gave to calculate MSP during his political speeches before the Lok Sabha Elections 2014. However, he did not explicitly mention that his party would implement the recommendations of the Swaminathan Commission.
Notably, since PM Modi came to power, the central government has consistently increased the MSP yearly, which was revealed in reply to an RTI filed by OpIndia. Furthermore, relevant data shows that the gap between the MSP by Swaminathan formula and the formula used by the government is decreasing with time. For example, the current MSP for wheat is Rs 2,275 per quintal, and with the Swaminathan Commission’s recommendations, it would be Rs 2,478. However, in some cases, the gap is much higher. For example, in the case of Safflower, the gap is around Rs 2,321. While the government is trying to fill the gap and increase the farmers’ income, the protesters want immediate implementation of the Swaminathan Commission’s recommendations, which will have grave economic consequences. Data shows it will severely impact the government’s spending structure and push the government to cut down funding of projects, including infrastructure and defense.
Furthermore, it is also essential to learn how MSP is calculated. The Central Government determines the minimum support price (MSP) using a formula that considers production costs and sets the price at one-and-a-half times these expenses. This approach finds explicit costs (A2), which include payments for goods such as seeds, fertilizer, pesticides, fuel, irrigation, hired labor, and leased-in land and the estimated value of unpaid labour done by family members (FL). Notably, the government determines MSP for 22 mandated crops based on recommendations from the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP), as well as the views of state governments and concerned Central Ministries/Departments.
Dallewal vouched for lowering PM Modi’s graph
Dallewal pointed out that the protesters have to get the commitment made by the current government fulfilled if the regime changes after the elections; they may say they did not make the commitments, and the farmers have to restart the efforts. The way of doing it was to hit the popularity of PM Modi in the country. He said, “Modi’s popularity graph has risen due to the Mandir (referring to Ram Mandir in Ayodhya). I keep telling everyone we must find a way to lower his graph. He will not do anything till his graph is high. However, he will agree to anything if the government feels his graph is falling”.
The statement about PM Modi’s popularity graph indicates there is a political vendetta behind the farmer protests. It can be seen as an attempt to give political benefit to opposition parties for the upcoming elections.
