Volume 6, No. 10, October 2005

-Amrit

The present Congress govt. in Punjab came into existence in Feb. 2002 by a simple majority. It was not formed because of the popularity of the Congress party, rather it succeeded in gaining power due to the notoriety of the Akali, BJP alliance and the internal rift among different Akali factions. Still the Akali Dal (Badal) could retain the status of opposition party by winning more than 40 seats out of 117. Before becoming Chief Minister, a long article in favour of the policies of imperialist globalization, privatization and liberalization by the present chief minister of Punjab, Capt. Amarinder Singh, was published in the Punjab newspapers, in which he expressed his commitment to implement these anti-people policies rapidly in Punjab. Since the inception of the Captain’s govt. whatever anti-people policies he has implemented, whatever ruling tactics he has employed and whatever gimmicks he has used to topple the opposition, all of them have not only sharpened the contradictions between the Punjabi people and the rulers, but also the contradictions among the Congress of the captain, his Akali rivals, and the different factions inside the Congress party. Now, when the situation has entered the phase of the legislative assembly elections in Punjab, let us take a glimpse of the different aspects of these contradictions reaching the existing state of affairs.

There have been enormous cracks in the ruling classes of Punjab. The ruling Congress party is deeply divided in factional feuds which have come to the surface particularly after their defeat in Punjab during the parliamentary elections in May 2004. There are also deep contradictions within the other the parties — not only the Akali Dal but even the CPM. The CPM it has been divided into three parts — one, the state committee of the CPM associated with the central leadership; two, CPM (Pasla) group, after rebellion from the central committee and working separately; three, MCPI under the leadership of Jagjit Lyallpuri. The last two along with the Liberation, are called the ‘left front’, and are not election allies of the Congress party. Also there are acute hostilities between the Congress and the Akali Dal, in fact the Congress spent much of its energies to hound the leaders of the Akali Dal and discredit them and many were even arrested.

The Captain’s govt. of Punjab with the Akali Dal (Badal) as its target, has been following the policies of Giani Zail Singh’s govt. to boost other Akali Dals including the Khalistanis. For this purpose he has taken up the issues concerning the Sikh religious minority in its own ruling class interests. For the same purpose he has passed the Punjab Termination of Water Agreement Act.-2004 on the issue of waters concerning the Punjabi Nationality. It can not be ruled out that in future he may play the card of ‘Award Chandigarh to Punjab’ and ‘Annexe Punjabi speaking areas with Punjab’ in order to out-manoeuvre his Akali rivals.

But the real conflict is between all these ruling class parties and the people which ahs got very acute in Punjab. Every section of the people have been on agitation within the state.

Crisis and the rise of Industrial workers:

Due to improper and fragmented development under the domination of imperialism, industry has not been able to absorb the rural population. Industry of Punjab is dependent on raw material from outside Punjab. It is fully applicable to the hosiery and cycle industry of Ludhiana and also to the Steel Industry of Gobindgarh and the oil refinery which is going to be set up in Bathinda.

Small industry of Punjab is also on its death bed. This can be estimated from the figures of the industrial units closed down during the last three years. During this period out of the 30% industrial units being closed, 90% are small-scale units. According to the all India census of small-scale industry, only 71,091 units are working out of a total of 1,54,686 units. The rest of them had to be closed down. As a result, unemployment is increasing. Industrial workers are coming on the roads with banners in their hands. Ludhiana, which is famous throughout the world as an industrial centre, is passing through a big upheaval. The prominent Hero cycle industry has been struck with prolonged strikes. The workers have faced sharp clashes with the management, their goonda gangs and police. Inspite of the efforts of a revisionist, reformist leadership to cool it down, it refuses to do so. Due to the devastation of small-scale industry the conditions to mobilize and organize the workers in small cities and towns of Punjab have become more favourable than before. During the tenure of the Captain govt. the contradiction between the owners and the working class has relatively sharpened.

Recently, there has been a glorious struggle of the employees against the privatization of the Sugar federation and the electricity board. In spite of the subjugationist compromise by the leaders of the electricity workers, this struggle has not cooled down. Although the govt. has postponed the corporatisation and privatization of the electricity board for six months due to their political calculations, yet, after the full implementation of this decision according to the Electricity Act-2003 the unrest among the electricity workers, peasants and workers can become explosive. Although the health department was corporatised during the Akali -BJP rule, after handing over the govt. hospitals to big companies like Reliance acute unrest may erupt against it among the health department and the people who will have to pay huge charges.

Along with the industrial sector, the agricultural sector of Punjab is also under a severe crisis. The prices of agricultural inputs are continuously rising. There has been an increase in the prices of fertilizers, oil, pesticides, seeds, electricity, several times during the tenure of the Captain’s govt. The prices of agricultural produce have been continuously falling. Though there has been a minor increase after a long time in the prices of the crops in Punjab this year, such as sugarcane, wheat, paddy, cotton, this is nowhere near the increase in prices of inputs.

When the Captain’s govt. rose to power, it, along with the peasant organizations of Punjab went to Delhi to protest against the then NDA govt. on the issue of rates of paddy. The Punjab govt. also announced a bonus of Rs. 30 on paddy. This bonus was to be paid in three installments but after releasing the bonus of Rs. 10, the rest of the bonus of Rs.20 has not been paid so far. Instead of fulfilling its promises made during the elections, the Captain’s govt., just after coming to power snatched away the facility of free electricity and water. Orders were issued to again collect the waived revenue. Even strictness was imposed for the payment of electricity bills for the period when they were waived — electric motors were disconnected of those peasants who did not pay the electricity bills during the campaign of the boycott of bills. New electricity connections were banned. Only under special schemes, highly expensive electricity connections were revived on the basis of personal expenditure and for the equipment.

Due to the crisis of electricity the peasant’s could not avail of proper electricity to grow their crops. During the tenure of the Captain the peasant organization of Punjab along with the organizations of employees launched a struggle for the solution of the above said problems of electricity and to prevent the privatization of the electricity board. The peasant organizations gheraoed the electricity officials and got their connections restored.

In spite of these struggles the increasing agricultural expenses and shrinking income has been resulting in the unbridled increase of debt of the peasantry of Punjab, which is already under heavy debt from the usurers and banks. According to the official figure this loan has risen upto Rs.12,500 crore rupees, where as it is in reality far above that figure. This problem manifests in increasing suicides by the peasantry in Punjab. Its second manifestation is the forcible occupation of the lands of poor and middle peasants by the usurers, banks, pro-capitalist big land lords, because of their inability to repay the loans. In the present situation of Punjab this contradiction has assumed quite sharp proportions. The peasant’s struggles of Chathewala, Tapa, Guru Harsahai, Karkandi, Maddoke, Lakha Hazi, Karam Garh Satran, Gidderbaha etc. are manifestations of the above problems. In these usurer Arhtiyas, their goonda gangs in connivance with the police and civil administration have attacked the peasants. They have attempted to forcibly occupy the lands of the peasants. At several places, particularly in Guru Harsahai, Gidderbaha, Karamgarh Satran, there have been direct clashes with the peasants.

The issue is not limited to usurer, arhtiyas alone. How are banks going to deal with this loan crisis? A t report in the Hindustan Times dated 23 June, 2005 leaves no doubt about this: "The Punjab state Co-operative Agriculutre Development Bank (Nabard) does not want to take any chances. It has got arrest warrants issued against hundreds of farmers in Bathinda, Muktsar, Mansa, Moga, Faridkot and Firozepur districts for defaulting on payments. Some farmers have been sent to jail. In Bathinda district alone, warrants have been issued against 100 farmers and about 15 of them have already been arrested. The bank has also procured land auction orders of some farmers. Fearing police raids, a number of farmers have fled homes."

While farmer bodies term it as tyranny, the bank officials say they have been left with no alternative but to pressure farmers into re-paying the loans. Official sources told H.T. that the recovery was unsatisfactory as 50-80% of the people had defaulted. The branches, where recovery percentage is low, are likely to be closed by the Nabard. Debt recovery is below 40% for most of the branches and could lead to their closure, said the sources. The co-operative banks have to recover Rs. 317.39 crore from 1,07,069 farmers in the state, of these 59,995 are defaulters and owe Rs. 196.51 crore to the banks.

In Bathinda alone, these banks have to recover Rs. 55.42 crore from 23,841 farmers. A sum of Rs. 36.22 crore is in the form of old loans. However, recovery of the bank’s Bathinda branch till June 18 was only 37% as against 52.2% for the last year. Similarly the Nathana branch recovered only 26.8% of the money it had lent to farmers, while Rampura Phul branch got back 34.3% of its loans. The recovery rate of the Talwandi Sabo and Rama mandi branches is 29.1% and 40.4% Sardulgarh, Mansa, Budhlada, Gidderbaha, Malout, Muktsar, Abohar, Jalalabad, Fazilka, Guruhar Sahai and Lambi branches too have not fared any better.

According to a bank officials, teams have been constituted to recover the money from defaulters. The officials fear that if they failed to recover half of the amount loaned to the farmers by June end, Nabard might declare these branches as defaulters.

On the other hand, farmer unions have been protesting the move and hold rallies and sit in dharnas whenever bank officials come with warrants or land auction orders. They are of the view that the Govt. should adopt a lenient approach as farmers are yet to recover from the losses they incurred due to successive crop failure in the last few years and low prices this season.

It is evident from the whole process that the agricultural crisis of Punjab has reached an explosive situation. Even on the eruption of a single struggle on the issue of debt, sequestration and occupation of land, thousands of peasants are arrested in Punjab. On the other hand, the peasants also come out on the roads to resist with sticks.

The impact of the agricultural crisis on the rural labourers is manifesting itself in even more horrible forms. The chronic agricultural crisis has already divested them from the land. Very few amongst them have been able to retain the little quantity of land. The daily wage work available in the agricultural sector has now shrunk to only seasonal work due to mechanization. Although agricultural sector absorbs a considerable part of the labourers on contract basis, yet the major part of rural labourers are unemployed, because of the non-availability of wage labour throughout the year.

In addition, the above mentioned industrial crisis is further aggravating the situation for those rural labourers who go to the cities in search of a living. As a result, the rural poor women are being pushed into prostitution on a large scale. Even the women of landless and poor peasants are being pushed into this profession. The debt crisis among the agricultural labourers is also very acute. There have been many instances of suicides among them also.

Being under the subjugation of pro-capitalist big land-lords they have also had to face extreme caste oppression. Recently, there have been instances of social boycott due to the demand for better wages. For example, in village Jangi-Rana of Distt. Bathinda, because of the controversy on the issue of wages the rural big-wigs through an announcement from the gurudwara speaker banned their entry into the fields. Men and women labourers were banned even from answering the call of nature in the fields. Their social functions were boycotted. Not only on the wage labourers, restrictions were also imposed on the contract workers. There are eight instances of Dalit youth being tortured to death in the police custody in seven districts of Punjab during the tenure of the Captain’s regime. The officials of the central Jail Jalandhar tortured a Dalit prisoner Sohan Lal with red hot iron rods. The words, "Scheduled Caste" written with these rods on his back make a mockery of the so-called development of Punjab.

Not to speak of any relief to this most oppressed section of villages by the Captain’s govt., even facilities like free electricity, the Shagun scheme started by the Punjab govt. for the rural labouring girls, the old age pension scheme, the public distribution system being run on subsidy, etc were suspended. Not only is the oppression and repression continuing as during the former regimes, but it is crossing all limits. On account of being victims of the severest crisis and caste discrimination there is a great potential to mobilise and organise these most oppressed sections. This potential has widened during the rule of the Captain’s govt. There is a crying need to canalize this potential.

There is acute unrest against the govt. policies of the commercialization of education among the students of schools and colleges from the peasant-worker-middle class families of the rural and urban areas. After closing govt. institutions the big business houses have opened private medical colleges, and technical training institutions on a large scale in cities and towns. These institutions being run in grand buildings have become the centres of exploitation of the students coming from the working section through fees and corruption. Recently there has been unbearable increase in fees of schools, colleges and universities. The students launched a sharp struggle against it. The Punjabi University, Patiala, has continuously been the centre of this struggle. The struggle against the contract system in I.T.I.’s and for revoking increased charges is still going on. The students have fought a glorious struggle against sharp increase in bus fares. It is still going on. The goonda gangs of private transporters openly attack the students. This phenomenon is coming up on a large scale in entire Punjab. These goonda gangs of the bus transporters owned by pro-capitalists big landlords connive with police and civil administration.

Recently, the student struggle against the handing over of govt. colleges to big business houses by the Punjab govt. has been extended to the govt. teachers also. Acute unrest among the teachers against this decision of the govt. has manifested in militant struggles. Lady teachers have also fought in the forefront. The C.P.I., C.P.M., Akali Dal have tried to exploit the resentment of the people through this struggle. The recent agitation of the E.T.T. teachers got on the nerves of the govt. The privatization of govt. schools will affect not only teachers; it will be more acute on the industrial workers, rural workers, peasants and middle class. They will be unable to get education for their children because of declining incomes, because of expensive education due to the privatization of the education. The literacy graph of Punjab will be lowered. Because of this privatisation there will be an increase in the educated unemployed, who are thirty five lakhs in Punjab at present.

The Captain’s govt. of Punjab was rapidly privatizing the electricity board, health, education, sugar mills etc — a total thirty corporations and boards. But after the Punjab visit of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in May 2005 it has for the time being postponed for some time the implementation of these decisions. On the contrary, it has started taking decisions keeping in view the coming elections scheduled for early 2007. The Captain has announced a deceptive plan named electricity bonus in order to fool the peasants. He has announced to lift the ban on recruitment imposed during his entire tenure. He has enacted the drama of supplying free hundred units of electricity to village workers. To mobilize the Congress party for the coming elections, the newly appointed president, Dullu, is appointing new office bearers. The Captain’s govt. is rapidly trying to snatch the political issues one by one to compete with the Akalis.

The contradictions between the rulers and the people are attaining explosive proportions. In view of this the chief ruling class parties of Punjab, the Congress and Akali Dal (B) along with their Allies have started election exercises. Both the parties have become more discredited than ever before among the people. The contradic-tions among the inner factions of both the parties are also sharpening. Both the parties during the last mid term elections to legislative assembly went to the extent of firing on each other in order to capture the booths through their goonda gangs in Garhshanker, Kapurthala and Ajnala.

Yet both the parties are vigorously implementing the imperialist policies of globalisation, liberalisation and privatisation. These policies will further tighten the imperialist grip on India including Punjab. This will only intensify the contradictions between the rulers and people to extreme levels. As a result, the ground for tumultuous struggles in Punjab is going to be more favorable. The conflict between the rulers and the people, which has reached the level of using sticks and swords, is going to enter into do-or-die struggles like those of Andhra, Bihar, Jhar-khand. Whichever party gains power in the elections, there will be basically no differ-ence — all are going to implement the polici-es of privatisation more vigorously. The ph-enomenon of instability of the govt. on an all-India scale will manifest in Punjab also.

So the situation is ripe for huge advances by the communist revolutionary forces by leading these struggles forward and in a revolutionary direction. In this context we cannot but remember comrade Mao’s, dictum "without people’s power, people have nothing" and "without a people’s army people have nothing". By advancing the peoples upsurge in this direction can they utilize the explosive situation of Punjab in favour of revolution.

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