MyVoice: Views of our readers 4th January 2021

Farmers' resistance, a historic move

As India's farmers strike a new monumental blow to resist the operation of the 'Reform' Bills passed by parliament without consultation and without a vote, it is not as though they do not seek 'reform.' It is simply the case that their view of 'reform' does not tally with the definition sought to be put upon the term by a government patently working in the interests of crony capitalists who seek now to appropriate the right to plough the farming sector into commercial profit-making.

Of course, Indian farmers wish for 'reform' such as would truly improve and enhance the fruitfulness of their intrepid labour. They may be excused for asking the question as to how it has transpired that their share of the GDP should have come down from some 50% to a measly 15%, even as some 60% of the population continue to comprise the farming community, remaining still the biggest employment provider of the republic.

Thus how is it that adopting the recommendations of the Swaminathan Commission which stipulated that farmers be compensated for the cost of production including family labour (C-2) and be assured a return of 50% over and above is not thought to constitute 'reform'? Instead, how is it that 'reform' only means throwing the food-grower open to the cut-throat vagaries of a so-called 'free-market' always in the clutches of the corporate?

Just a thought: has there been a greater 'reform' in modern Indian history than the adoption of the Constitution in 1949 – that gave to us universal adult franchise, the right to own the land we till, and sundry fundamental rights to protect the citizen from the excesses of the State?

The current contention thus bears squarely on the ownership not just of goods and assets but of definitions and vocabulary. Remarkably, this once, the most ordinary of farmers is now sentient to the trickery sought to be played on him in the name of 'reform,' and that knowledge lends to the ongoing farmer's resistance a strength and intellectual force not seen before.

Dr Alisha Qadri, Hyderabad

Independent Muslim politics in the offing

The AIMIM provided much-needed relief for Muslims by coming forward to voice their grievances and expand their representation not just in Hyderabad, but in many other States as well. After the party chief Asaduddin Owaisi's bid in Maharashtra, his party won five seats in Bihar.

The AIMIM is confident of doing well in Bengal. On social media, middle class Muslims are glad that Muslims are regaining the lost space. Poorer Muslims are left with little choice but to vote for the AIMIM to get an assurance of protection. However, wherever the AIMIM is performing well, it seems to be aiding the BJP by splitting the Muslim vote. The impact of this was most profound in Bihar where the elections were closely fought.

The outcome became even murkier with Owaisi announcing that he would wait and decide which party to support in the eventuality of a hung Assembly. His reasoning seems to be that as far as Muslims are concerned, it makes no difference whether it is the Congress led-secular formation or the BJP-led 'communal' formation as both have short-changed the Muslims and robbed them of their rightful dues.

This argument is similar to the Dalit-Bahujan view that the Congress and the Left parties are no different from the BJP when it comes to providing opportunities to the marginalised castes. The support of marginalised castes and now Muslim votes cannot be taken for granted by highlighting the impending threat of the BJP.

Dalit-Bahujans and Muslims prefer to improve their own footprint. Significantly, Owaisi is pitching for an independent Muslim politics in alliance with Dalit parties like the Bahujan Samaj Party in Bihar and the Republican Party of India in Maharashtra.

Syed Omar Farooq, Hyderabad