In Village Hardike in Sangrur the Zameen Prapt Sangharsh committee planted their flags to launch a successful land capture of seven acres of land. A truly remarkable victory giving the ruling classes a striking blow and tribute to relentless spirit of activists. Heroically they resisted strong police contingents assembled who were determined to sabotage the proceedings, who were shaken to the very core. One of the most effective actions challenging practice of dummy land auctioning.
It was retaliatory action undertaken against the dummy land auction, a month before.
For the last month ZPSC undertook determined resistance to challenge dummy land auctions. On one occasion It launched an intensive 6 hour gherao of the BDPO headquarters demanding justice.
Leaders Mukesh Mulaudh and Paramjeet Kaur stated inspite of sustained struggle the govt took no steps to ensure that the 33 year lease of 1/3rd Panchayat Zameen land was denied. They projected the unjust nature of the social order, perpetrating discrimination..
The Block development Officer contradicted this saying that land distribution was conducted fairly with deserving prices awarded. He assured that any irregularity in awarding land fairly would be addressed in the high court.
Leaders Bikkar Hathua Gurvinder Singh and Dharmpal pledged that they would raise the demands to chief minister Bhagwant Mann. If the demands were no enforced within 10 days to scrap dummy land distribution then they would start tilling the land themselves.
We must congratulate such developments which send shivers down the spine of the casteist ruling class establishment and landlords but guard against caste identity approach, not perceiving overall context of agrarian movement. Still we hardly witness integration of the landed peasantry or a superstructure that establishes victories of the dalit landless labour in the long to bring an effective change in the social order or isolate the ruling class forces.Often such victories are short-lived with upper castes re-establishing hegemony over land with patronage of administration. The movement has to be intensified to give it a greater mass -political shape instead of mere land takeover actions, forge link between economic and political demands and build a more fortified network of struggles of dalit labour in villages.
Harsh Thakor is a freelance journalist who covers mass movements around India
