Modi’s broken promises ignite farmers’ fury: Hunger strikes revive protests

On January 4, thousands of farmers convened for the Kisan Mahapanchayat—a large gathering of farming villagers from surrounding areas—to mark the 40th day of Jagjit Singh Dallewal’s hunger strike. Dallewal, a 70-year-old farmer from Punjab and a cancer survivor, addressed the crowd with heartfelt anguish, decrying the plight of Indian agriculture. He lamented the thousands of farmers who, he claimed, had been driven to suicide due to the government's flawed policies. “I cannot sleep at night thinking about the orphaned children of those farmers. If my sacrifice can prevent the suicides of lakhs [thousands] more, I am ready to give my life.”

The protest, peaceful yet resolute, was the largest since the 2021 farmers' agitation. Dallewal, now frail and carried to the stage on a stretcher, remains a symbol of the deepening crisis in Indian farming, and his hunger strike has galvanized a renewed wave of resistance.

The scale of farmer suicides in India underscores the urgency of this crisis. Over the past decade, at least 112,000 people working in the agricultural sector have taken their own lives, according to the National Crime Record Bureau. In 2022 alone, 11,290 farmers and farm labourers died by suicide, with the rising stress from climate change and insurmountable debts playing significant roles.

“Every farmer’s fight”

On November 25, Dallewal made a discerning decision. Before leaving his home to join the protest at the Khanauri border—214 km from his village—he transferred ownership of his 17-acre land and property to his son, daughter-in-law, and nine-year-old grandson. It was his way of preparing for what lay ahead: an indefinite hunger strike to demand justice for India’s farmers.

“I have to be on a hunger strike,” he told his family. “This is every farmer’s fight. Either I’ll return home victorious or you’ll receive my body,” his son Gurpinder Singh Brar, 31, told TRT World.

The next day, November 26, Dallewal travelled to the Khanauri border, located in the northwestern Punjab state, and joined hundreds of farmers in a sit-in protest.

Today, as he lies on a makeshift bed, at the protest site, doctors check his health every six hours.

“If we want to survive and secure the future of our youth, we have no choice but to continue this fight until the government listens to us. It’s up to them to decide how much loss we’ll have to endure to achieve our goals. They need to engage with us,” said Brar from the sit-in, adding that nearly every family in their village has at least one member participating in the protest.

A legacy of protest

The ongoing protest is a continuation of the globally reported 2020–2021 farmers’ agitation. At that time, Indian farmers mobilised against three controversial farm laws passed by Parliament in September 2020. Their year-long resistance forced Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government to repeal the bills and agree to discuss other demands, including setting up a panel to ensure support prices for all farm produce.

However, farmers say that even after multiple meetings, no progress has been made.

Frustrated by the government’s inaction, farmers launched a renewed wave of protests on February 13, 2024, across the Haryana-Punjab border.

“After three years, there is no development but only unfulfilled promises. That’s why we are here again,” said Abhimanyu Kohar, a farmer leader in the protest.

He told TRT World that farmers have planned to continue their protest peacefully, “despite enduring oppression from the government.”

The impasse has prompted 250 farmers’ unions nationwide across India at key border points in northern India, under the banners of the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha and the Samyukta Kisan Morcha, a collective of 150 unions operating as a non-political platform.

Farmers, primarily from Punjab, Haryana, and Rajasthan—India’s leading agricultural states—are rallying for multiple demands.

Chief among these is the legal assurance of the Minimum Support Price (MSP), a government scheme designed to shield farmers from significant price drops for essential crops. While MSP covers 22 crops, it largely benefits wheat and rice farmers.

In addition to a legally mandated MSP, farmers are demanding waivers on farm debts, pensions, and compensation for the families of more than 700 farmers who died during the 2020–2021 protests.

Lack of government response

Farmers express deep frustration over the Indian government’s muted response, noting the absence of any major policy announcements.

Tensions escalated on February 28, 2024, when police used drones to drop tear gas canisters on protesting farmers at a border point in Haryana. Tens of thousands of farmers, travelling on tractors and trucks, were headed to New Delhi when the clash occurred. According to Kohar, a 21-year-old farmer was killed, and hundreds were injured.

“Since then, we have avoided moving into Delhi. We do not want our children to be killed,” said Kohar.

As Dallewal’s health weakens, farmer leaders issue daily updates, urging Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to open dialogue. The Supreme Court has intervened, questioning the government’s inaction and directing Punjab’s administration to provide medical aid to Dallewal.

“But farmers do not want the Supreme Court to be the party in this. Because it is the government of India which finally has to take a decision and make policies,” Mahesh Choudhary, a media coordinator for Kisan Majdoor Morcha (KMM), a farmers union, told TRT World.

Agriculture in India

According to the 2020–2021 Indian Economic Survey, the nation’s agriculture sector employed more than 50 percent of the workforce and contributed 20.2 percent to the GDP.

However, a 2023 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) report revealed that Indian farmers faced implicit taxation of $120 billion—the highest among 54 countries—due to export bans, duties, and other policies that lower agricultural commodity prices.

Reports indicate that in 2019, the average monthly income for agricultural households was about $120, and nearly half of these households were burdened by debt.

“Indian farmers are, quite literally, cultivating losses,” said food and policy expert Devinder Sharma. “Successive governments have shown little interest in ensuring farmers move beyond merely breaking even. Despite this, there’s a persistent narrative among urban populations that agriculture is a pampered sector,” he told TRT World.

Experts believe addressing farmers’ demands within the current agricultural and policy framework is complex and will not be solved without transforming India’s agrifood systems.

“It demands a transformative overhaul of agrifood systems. Real solutions lie in revisiting global trade rules that commodify food, supporting sustainable farming practices, and incentivising farmers for their role in biodiversity and climate action—balancing market dynamics with ecological and social priorities,” said Tavseef Mairaj, a postdoctoral researcher in agrifood systems.

Solidarity and resilience

Back at the Khanauri border, thousands of farmers keep visiting Dallewal to show their solidarity. Women and children from nearby villages participate in daylong sit-ins, while men stay at the protest site. With support from NGOs and local villagers, food, water, and winter blankets are distributed among the protesters.

For many, Dallewal’s resolve is a source of inspiration, especially to his son: “At times when I feel demotivated, I secretly watch my father as he sleeps. Seeing him literally risk his life motivates me to stay by his side and not give up,” said Brar.

The duration of the protest remains uncertain, but the determination of India’s farmers is clear: they will not relent until their voices are heard and their demands are met.