Farmer leaders after their assembly with Union ministers within the nationwide capital on Tuesday. (Specific photograph by Tashi Tobgyal)
From an Military veteran and a former medical practitioner to a former footballer and dyed-in-the-wool Communists, meet the 35 who’re sitting throughout the desk within the assembly with the federal government in the present day.
Surjeet Singh Phool (75)
Bharatiya Kisan Union, or BKU (Krantikari)
Political hyperlink: none
One of the crucial influential leaders of the continued protests, Phool was booked beneath UAPA by Punjab authorities in 2009 when he was accused of being linked to Maoists and positioned beneath “intensive interrogation” in jail in Amritsar. Farmers’ unions had acquired collectively in protest to demand his launch. On authorities’s request to farmers to shift protest location, Phool had equated Burari with an open jail.
Hannan Mollah (74), West Bengal
All India Kisan Sabha
Political hyperlink: CPM
He joined CPM on the age of 16 and has since risen by the ranks to grow to be a Politburo member.
Bogh Singh Mansa (68)
BKU
Political hyperlink: none
Singh, now president of the union, has been engaged on points associated to farmers for the final 42 years and acquired concerned in activism in his pupil days as a coordinating member of the Punjab College students’ Union.
Joginder Singh (75)
BKU (Ugrahan); one of many largest outfits in protest
Political hyperlink: none
Singh left the Military to take care of his household’s farm and shaped BKU (Ugrahan) in 2002. He’s amongst few leaders with whom Residence Minister Amit Shah spoke with to request the agitation to be shifted to Burari.
Dr Darshan Pal (70)
Krantikari Kisan Union; energetic in Malwa area
Political hyperlink: none
After untimely retirement from Punjab Civil Medical Service, Pal took to agriculture — his household owned 15 acres of land. He began taking part in farmers’ programmes in 2007 and joined BKU. In 2016, when Krantikari Kisan Union was shaped, he turned its member and was appointed president in the course of the pandemic.
Kulwant Singh Sandhu (65)
Jamhuri Kisan Sabha.
Political hyperlink: Central Committee, Revolutionary Marxist Occasion of India
Sandhu started as a pupil activist with CPM’s pupil wing, SFI, and fought the separatist motion in Punjab. He was elected sarpanch of Jalandhar’s Rurka Kalan village given his place in opposition to militancy and was as soon as shot in his leg. He left CPM in 2001.
Buta Singh Burj Gill (66)
BKU (Ekta-Dakonda)
Political hyperlink: None
He has been working amongst farmers since 1984 and was amongst leaders who gheraoed Punjab Raj Bhawan for a number of days in 1984. He was earlier a part of BKU (Ekta-Sidhupur) faction, which suffered a break up in 2006, and have become a part of the group which was later renamed BKU (Ekta-Dakonda).
Nirbhay Singh Dudhike (70)
Kirti Kisan Union
Political hyperlink: CPI(ML) New Democracy
Dudhike got here to political forefront throughout an agitation in opposition to killing of two college students in police firing in Moga in 1972. He was related to Tarimala Nagi Reddy’s Unity Centre of Communist Revolutionaries of India-Marxist Leninist (UCCRI-ML) and based the Tillers Union. He was jailed for 19 months in the course of the Emergency and joined CPI(ML) New Democracy within the late Nineteen Eighties.
Baldev Singh Nihalgarh (64)
Kul Hind Kisan Sabha
Political hyperlink: State govt member, CPI
He started with CPI’s youth wing, AIYF, and later turned one of many frontline farmer leaders of Punjab. KHKS is affiliated to CPI’s All India Kisan Sabha, and Nihalgarm comes from a household of Communists.
Ruldu Singh Mansa (68),
Punjab Kisan Union; influential in Malwa
Political hyperlink: CPI(ML) Liberation
Rising by farmer actions, Mansa is founder-leader and president of All India Kisan Mahasabha, which is affiliated to CPI(ML) Liberation. He was expelled from BKU (Ekta-Sidhupur) some 15 years in the past because of his affiliation with the CPI(ML) Liberation.
Main Singh Punnawal (60)
All India Kisan Sabha
Political hyperlink: CPM
His household owns farms in Punnawal. Married to “daughter of a comrade”, Punnawal mentioned it was determined at his marriage ceremony that he’ll work for the occasion whereas his spouse, a trainer, can work for household earnings. Punnawal has been with Left outfits for almost 5 many years now since he joined SFI at a school in Sangrur in 1973.
Inderjeet Singh Kot Budha (50)
Kisan Sangharsh Committee (Punjab – Kot Buddha); energetic in Amritsar, Tarn Taran, Jalandhar, Firozepur, and so on
Political Affiliation: None
He has a seven-acre farm in Kot Buddha village in Tarn Taran. He was unable to attend the assembly because of ailing well being and despatched a consultant. He was made the pinnacle of the outfit in 2018. “We’re with no occasion; we’re farmers,” he says.
Gurbaksh Singh Barnala (67)
Jai Kisaan Andolan
Political Affiliation: None
Barnala mentioned he’s a small farmer proudly owning 2.5 acres in Barnala’s Kattu village. He’s a founding member of his outfit, which was established in 2015. He didn’t attend the assembly because of ill-health.
Satnam Singh Pannu (65)
Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee; energetic in 10 districts in Majha, Doaba and Malwa areas
Coming from Tarn Taran’s Piddi village, Pannu has been energetic in actions since his faculty days. His outfit is taken into account as having taken the strongest place in opposition to the farm legal guidelines for the reason that begin. His union continued its dharna on the tracks at Jandiala Guru close to Amritsar even after others agreed to name off the protest final week. His outfit was shaped in 2000 when the then SAD-BJP authorities was not procuring paddy from mandis and it was because of their agitation that the crop was lastly lifted.
Kanwalpreet Singh Pannu (55)
Kisan Sangharsh Committee (Punjab)
Political hyperlink: none
His outfit was established in 2000 and has been a part of a number of agitations, together with the one in opposition to land acquisition legal guidelines in 2015. In April, his outfit held a protest with distancing norms in the course of the lockdown, demanding that wheat crop be lifted, and the needy be supplied free healthcare and ration.
Harjinder Singh Tanda (57)
Azaad Kisan Sangharsh Committee (Punjab); energetic in 4 districts
Political hyperlink: none
Tanda has a 13-acre farm on which he grows paddy and greens, and was sarpanch of his village for 15 years till 2018. He has participated in a number of protests since 2000, when he turned a founding-member of Kisan Sangharsh Committee. He turned a part of the splinter group of the committee and later based Azad Kisan Sangharsh Committee.
Jagjeet Singh Dalewal (62)
BKU-Sidhupur; claims to have 1.75 lakh members
Political hyperlink: none
Dalewal belongs to a household of farmers and has 17 acres of land. Helped by his son in farming, he says he’s shedding cash by not sowing for the kharif crop however “the loss we are going to face if the legal guidelines usually are not reversed is far increased than one season’s monetary loss”. He has been a part of unions for 3 many years now.
Harmeet Singh (43)
BKU (Qadian); has 70,000 members within the district
Political hyperlink: None
His grandfather was a founding member of BKU, and Singh is among the many new era farmer-leaders within the state. He has 20 acres of land, and says he tries to carry the motion alive on the grassroots by common conferences on the village and district stage. He joined the union 15 years in the past.
Balbir Singh Rajewal (77)
BKU (Rajewal)
Political hyperlink: None
Born in 1943 in Ludhiana in a household of farmers, Rajewal accomplished his schooling and joined the farmers’ union in 1971. He has 60 acres of land, runs a faculty, a school, and an “honesty” store which has no shopkeeper however solely has a field for purchasers to deposit cash for what they purchase. He says he has by no means been affiliated to any political occasion. Rajewal has been energetic within the union after his son left his job as a industrial pilot in 1992 to take over farming from him.
Satnam Singh Sahni (48)
BKU (Daoba); energetic in Daoba with primarily sugarcane farmers as members
Political hyperlink: none
Among the many youngest farmer leaders, Sahni has round 30 acres of land and shot to fame amongst farmers’ unions when he mobilised farmers in opposition to low procurement charge of sugarcane 5 years in the past, forcing the state authorities to extend costs. A postgraduate from Khalsa Faculty, he was a footballer in Panjab College.
Balvinder Singh Aulakh (42)
Majha Kisan Committee; energetic in Majha area
Political hyperlink: none
Aulakh has led agitations associated to points confronted by sugarcane farmers for the final six years. A sarpanch, Aulakh arrange the committee in 2014 and has additionally been dealing with points associated to mandis in his space.
Baldev Singh Sirsa (72)
Lok Bhalai Insaaf Welfare Society
Political hyperlink: none
From Amritsar, Sirsa is a widely known face on native TV channels and is understood for his many litigation associated to farmers’ points and Sikh non secular institutes in Excessive Courtroom. He has additionally labored in Haryana as a social activist. Sirsa’s father was identified to be near Chaudhry Devi Lal and he’s thought-about near OP Chautala.
Satnam Singh Behru (81)
Indian Farmers Affiliation
Political hyperlink: none
Behru has been engaged on agrarian points for almost 4 many years, and is well-known for his petition in Supreme Courtroom in 2011 in opposition to the Manmohan Singh authorities for not implementing the Swaminathan committee report. His outfit backed BJP within the 2014 elections however is now at odds with the Narendra Modi authorities for refusing to implement the Swaminathan committee’s suggestions and “betraying the farmers”.
Buta Singh Shadipur (59)
Bhartiya Kisan Manch
Political hyperlink: Former SAD member
His father was a member of SAD and Shadipur labored on points associated to farmers on behalf of the occasion for greater than 30 years. He left the occasion in 2016 to launch the Bhartiya Kisan Manch in 2016, and performed a key position in bringing collectively totally different outfits within the present agitation.
Jungbeer Singh Tanda (45)
Doaba Kisan Samiti
Political hyperlink: none
From Hoshiarpur district, Tunda has labored for farmers on points associated to sugarcane cultivation. His outfit mentioned they’re decided to maintain the agitation apolitical.
Mukesh Chandra (65)
Doaba Kisan Sangharsh Committee; influential in areas round Jalandhar
Political hyperlink: none
Vice chairman of his outfit, Chandra led protests in Jalandhar between August and October 2016 to demand notification of the 0238 number of sugarcane to carry its worth to Rs 370 per quintal. He was a part of the teams which negotiated with Punjab CM Amarinder Singh, and finally agreed to raise the rail blockade.
Sukhpal Singh Daffar (61)
Ganna Sangharsh Committee; energetic in Hoshiarpur
Political hyperlink: none
Daffar is president of the committee, which primarily represents sugarcane farmers in Dasuya. The outfit led an agitation two years in the past to demand sugar mills to clear dues and improve costs, blocking Jammu-Jalandhar freeway and railway tracks.
Harpal Singh (60)
Azad Kisan Committee Doaba; working primarily in Hoshiarpur
Political hyperlink: none
Singh has led the outfit throughout street blockades in Hoshiarpur in September
Baldev Singh Miyapur (69)
BKU (Mann); headquartered in Haryana
Political hyperlink: historically near the Congress
Miyapur is Punjab president of the outfit and has been a longstanding a part of farmer agitations throughout north India, together with elevating the demand for freedom to develop Bt cotton in July 2019
Kripal Singh Nathuvala (52)
Kisan Bachao Morcha; Punjab-based farmers’ wing of Worldwide Panthic Dal
Political hyperlink: none
Nathuvala is president of KBM, which has been vocal about farmers’ points, together with water sharing, and was concerned in negotiations with Punjab authorities over the rail blockade.
Parminder Singh Pal Majra (65)
BKU (Lakhowal),
Political hyperlink: Outfit near the SAD
Majra is Punjab president of the outfit, which filed a petition in opposition to the farm legal guidelines in Supreme Courtroom, allegedly with out permission of different farmer unions. Throughout talks with the Union Agriculture Secretary in October, he had hit out on the Centre for “attempting to coach farmers”.
Prem Singh Bhangu
Kul Hind Kisan Federation
Political hyperlink: Marxist Communist Party of India (United)
A working towards lawyer in Punjab and Haryana Excessive Courtroom, Bhangu is founder president of KHKF, established in 2014. He has been related to farmers’ points since 1992 and is an old-timer in Left politics, beginning with SFI in his faculty days within the Nineteen Seventies.
Kiranjeet Sekhon
Kul Hind Kisan Federation (Sangrur); energetic in Sangrur
Political Hyperlink: Marxist Communist Occasion of India (United)
Related to the Left since his faculty days and a part of Left farmers’ organisations, Sekhon is a working towards lawyer in Sangrur and floated a Sangrur faction of KHKF two years in the past.
Gurnam Singh Channuni (60) Haryana
BKU (Chaduni)
Political hyperlink: AAP
An prosperous farmer and arhtiya from Kurukshetra district, he has been related to farm points for a number of years and is the face of the continued agitation in Haryana. His spouse contested Lok Sabha polls on an AAP ticket whereas he contested 2019 Lok Sabha polls as an Impartial.
Shiv Kumar Kakka; Madhya Pradesh
Rashtriya Kisan Mazdoor Mahasangh
Political hyperlink: None
A veteran of the JP Motion, Kaka was born in a household of farmers and has been related to agrarian points for the reason that Nineteen Eighties. He was initially related to RSS and is understood to have gone to jail greater than 50 occasions because of his position in agitations.
COMPILED BY MANOJ C G, KRISHN KAUSHIK, AVISHEK DASTIDAR, ESHA ROY, DIPANKAR GHOSE AND DEEPTIMAN TIWARY
