• Dr. Raju Pandey

There were many occasions in his life when Gandhiji needed to introduce himself and every time he declared himself to be a farmer. Facing a case of treason in 1922, Gandhi Ji introduces himself as a farmer and weaver in front of a special court in Ahmedabad. Again, according to the manifesto given for Navajivan Trust in Ahmedabad in November 1929, Gandhi Ji describes himself as a farmer and weaver by profession. Much later, in September 1945, Gandhi Ji visits the Bhandarkar Oriental Institute of Research, Poona. He is accompanied by Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and Rajkumari Amrit Kaur. Again, in the visitors’ book of the institute, Gandhi Ji introduces himself as a farmer.

In 1904, Henry Pollack, a vegetarian friend of Gandhi Ji in South Africa, presented him with Ruskin’s ‘Unto This Last’. Gandhi ji made Ruskin’s idea of - a labor-intensive life, a land-tilling farmer or a handicraftsman’s exemplary life - his core mantra. From the Phoenix Ashram (1904), farming became a part of the life of his ashrams. After returning to India, fruits and vegetables continued to be cultivated at Satyagraha Ashram (1915) in Ahmedabad. Later, when the Sevagram Ashram was established at some distance from Wardha in 1936, the village and farmers remained the focal point of Gandhi Ji’s priorities. Many scholars have quoted Gandhi Ji saying in the first prayer meeting after the arrival at Sevagram thus, that our vision should not be towards Delhi but towards the countryside. The countryside is our Kalpavriksha (wish-fulfilling divine tree).

In Gandhi Ji’s vision, farmers and India are synonymous with each other. Non-violence and fearlessness are the basic traits of the nature of a farmer and Satyagraha is his basic right against exploitation and oppression. He writes in Hind Swaraj (1909) –

In your view, India means a few kings, but in my view, India means millions of farmers on whom rests these kings and your existence. I tell you with confidence that our farmers still sleep fearlessly in the fields, whereas the British and you will be reluctant to sleep there. Farmers have never been and will not be intimidated by anyone’s power. They do not know how to wield a sword, nor do they fear facing anyone else’s. They are great subjects who are not scared even of death. They have given up the fear of death. The fact is that farmers and prajamandals have used satyagraha in their own as well as the state’s business. The subjects get angry when the king commits crime. This is Satyagraha.

- Hind Swaraj, Navajivan, Ahmedabad, pages 58-59

Today our government may doubt the ability and intelligence of the farmers and many interlocutors who discuss with the farmers portray them as unintelligent, but Gandhiji sees in them an independent, awakened and enlightened citizen –

As soon as you talk to these Indian farmers and they start speaking to you, you will see that they are a storehouse of knowledge. You will see that behind their unfathomable outer form there is a deep lake of spiritual experience and knowledge. An age-old culture is hidden behind the outer covering of sloppiness in the Indian peasantry. If we remove this outer covering, remove their long-term poverty and illiteracy, then we will get a beautiful sample of a cultured, civilized and free citizen.

- Harijan 28 January 1939

Gandhiji considered the exploitation of farmers as the most serious problem in the country and he has repeatedly described it in his articles and speeches as an obstacle to the freedom of the country. In the historical speech given on 6 February, 1916, at the inauguration of Kashi Hindu University, Gandhiji says:

Whenever I see a stately building; Only one thought comes to my mind i.e. Alas! All this money has been looted from farmers. As long as we keep looting our farmers or let others loot them, our longing for self-government cannot be considered as true. Only a farmer can save the country.

About 77 years ago, Gandhi Ji proclaims that the land should belong to the one who cultivates it and not the landlord. He advises farmers to be oriented towards cooperatives to avoid exploitation at the hands of landlords and capitalists. He discusses the entitlements of agricultural laborers. Today, landless farmers and agricultural laborers are out of the discussion itself and everyone is in a hurry to dismiss cooperatives. According to Gandhiji:

Farmers are primary- be they landless laborers or hard-working landowners. It is due to their hard work that the earth has become fruitful and prosperous, and hence, the truth is that the land belongs to them or should be theirs, and not of the landlords who live off the land. But in non-violent methods, the working peasant cannot forcefully take away their land from these landlords. He should work in such a way that it becomes impossible for the landlord to exploit him. It is indispensable for farmers to have close co-operation among themselves. To fulfil this, where there are no such committees, they should be formed and wherever necessary they should be restructured. Farmers are mostly illiterate. Education should be given to those of school going age and to adults. Education should be given to both men and women. At the same time, the wages of agricultural laborers should be increased to such an extent that they can get the facilities of decent living, i.e. they can get homes and clothes as needed in terms of balanced food and health.

- The Bombay Chronicle, 28-10-1944

Today we see that the farmers of the country are agitating against the three agricultural laws forcibly imposed by the Central Government. Due to the widespread nature of public support and agitation for the farmers, the central government is fearful and wants to defeat the farmers by any means. Gandhiji had warned us long ago that if the neglect and exploitation and suppression of farmers continued, the situation could become explosive. He wrote:

If Indian society is to make real progress on a peaceful path, then the bourgeoisie must accept that a farmer is one among them and that this class is not any better than the poor only due to its wealth. If the bourgeoisie, considering it as the sign of the times, changes its views about property being its God-gifted entity, then the seven lakhs of dunghills that are called villages today, can be made home to peace, health and happiness, immediately. There are only two ways to choose from–first is that the bourgeoisie leaves its surplus collection voluntarily and as a result everyone gets real happiness. Second, if the bourgeoisie does not get warned in time, crores of awakened but ignorant and hungry people will create such a mess in the country that even the military power of a powerful government cannot stop it. I have hoped that India will be able to survive this disaster.’

- Young India, 5 December 1929

Neglect of villages and forcibly pushing farmers towards urban factories by reducing them to mere laborers from owners, is an essential part of the modern development process. Gandhi Ji had realized this long ago:

I believe and I have repeated this a number of times that India resides not in its handful of cities but in its seven lakh villages. But we, Indians, feel that India resides in its cities and villages are built only to meet the needs of the cities. We have never bothered to think if those poor even get enough to feed or cover themselves.

- Harijan, 4 April 1935

Gandhi Ji himself led successful peasant movements. Many peasant movements started with his inspiration and were also successful under his guidance. Non-violence and satyagraha were the foundation of these peasant movements. The Champaran Satyagraha of April 1917 is particularly notable because it shows a lot of similarity with today’s conditions. Poor farmers of Champaran, landless farmers and agricultural laborers were forced to take cash crops instead of food grains. The exploitation of the farmers of Champaran was multi-layered - the plantation owners, landlords and the British. Three brutal ways to force indigo cultivation and forty-six types of illegal taxes - about 21900 acres of agricultural land at that time was affected by it.

The problems of thirteen thousand farmers of 2900 villages were written under the guidance of Gandhiji. In order to thwart Gandhi Ji’s scientific non-violent movement, the Olha factory at Turkauliya was put to ashes (fire), but Gandhi Ji’s resolve was steadfast. Then, the British Deputy Governor of Bihar, Edward Gate, formed the Champaran Agrarian Committee. Gandhi Ji was its member. Based on the recommendations of this committee, tinkathiya system (compulsory cultivation of indigo in 3 kathaa (per bigha) out of every 20 kathaa of land) was abolished, rent rates were reduced and some compensation was also provided to the farmers.

This was the first successful use of Satyagraha in the country. Like the British rulers of that period, today’s neo-colonialist powers want to control farmers’ land through contract farming and get crops of their choice cultivated. Vicious attempts based on violence were made to thwart Gandhiji’s non-violent movement. On 26 January, 2021, some similar conspiracies were hatched. But farmers did not lose patience as done by Gandhiji, the non-violent and transparent form of the movement remained intact. All the conspiracies of power failed, and the peasants won.

Many Satyagraha movements also took place due to Gandhiji’s inspiration. These movements were related to the problems of the farmers. Sardar Patel had successfully conducted these movements. The secret of the success of movements like Kheda (1918), Borsad (1922–23) and Bardoli (1928) was, according to Gandhiji, to keep a complete distance from the deadly tendency of using farmers for political gains. According to Gandhiji, these movements were successful because they could keep themselves focused on the basic and everyday problems of the farmers and politics did not get an opportunity to enter them. Again, Gandhiji emphasizes the non-violent nature of these movements. According to him, the day farmers recognize their power of non-violence, no power in the world can stop them. (Constructive Program: Its Meaning and Place, Navajivan, Ahmedabad, pages 22–23).

In relation to Bardoli Satyagraha, Gandhiji said:

The farmer who serves the earth is the real landowner, why should he fear the landlord or the government.

The leadership of the current peasant movement should remember this lesson of Gandhi ji again and again. The nature of the movement should always remain non-violent. The movement should be completely apolitical. The focus of the agitators should be entirely on the problems of the farmers. Above all, if the farmers have faith in their power of non-violence, they will surely get success.

The path of the farmers is difficult, the struggle will go on for a long time, but the mantra that Gandhi ji gave pre-independence is relevant, word-by-word, even today:

If the assemblies prove incapable of protecting the interests of the farmers, then the farmers will always have a sure cure of civil disobedience and non-cooperation. But in the end, what protects the people from injustice or oppression is not laws written on paper, heroic words or fiery speech, but a force born of non-violent organization, discipline and sacrifice.

- The Bombay Chronicle, 12 January 1945

There is also a question of farmers’ participation in power. In this regard, Gandhi ji had expressed his opinion with great clarity and frankness. In a detailed interview given to the famous farmer leader NG Ranga on the problems of farmers, Gandhiji said:

I have no doubt that if we achieve democratic self-rule and if we have gained our freedom through non-violence - then it must be so, then farmers should have all kinds of powers along with political power.

- The Bombay Chronicle, 12 January 1945

Gandhi’s ardent desire to hand over power to the peasants continued till the end of his life. On 29 January, 1948, during a prayer meeting, he said:

If I have my way, our Governor-General will be a farmer, our tallest minister will be a farmer, everything will be a farmer, because the king here is a farmer. I was taught a poem during childhood - “O farmer, you are the king.” What will we eat if the farmer does not produce from land? He is the real king of India. But today we have reduced him to a slave. What should farmers do today? Become an MA? Be a BA? If that be done, the farmer will lose his identity. He will not drive backwards. If farmer becomes head, the face of India will change. The nation would be purged of whatever is rotten today.

The peasants could not get the central role in power after independence as Gandhiji had wished, but the participation of the peasants in power has progressively decreased. The peasants who held the power also could not behave like indigenous peasants. The glare of power made them disoriented. They could be seen neglecting villages and farming and advocating for cities and industries. They could not recognize the importance of decentralization of power and economy. If the participation of farmers in power is negligible and the conduct of power is anti-farmer then the farmers’ behaviour as a voter is no less responsible for this. Farmers have been electing their representatives as voters, on the basis of ethnic, religious and party commitments.

Today, it is also necessary to remember Gandhi Ji and to re-enact him because the strategy being adopted to weaken the peasant movement is in fact ruining the India of Gandhi’s dream. It is a strategy of hatred and division. The narrowness of caste, religion and sect was made secondary by this peasant movement, but now it is being redeemed as a separatist movement with religious identity. Infinite shades of division, doubt and hatred are coming into view. The farmers of the entire country are being used to undermine the national form of this movement.

The idea of small and medium poor farmers against a rich and big farmer has been put in the discussion so that doubts can be created in the minds of crores of farmers who have a lot of hope from this movement. The chaotic and illiterate farmer is being discussed against the honest and responsible middle-class so that the middle-class farmers forget the agony of the blows of liberalization and privatization and get themselves involved in protests. Old divisive formulas like Hindu-Muslim and Hindu-Sikh and patriotic-seditious are also making their place gradually. The countrymen are fighting among themselves like enemies. This is not Gandhi’s India. Gandhi is no longer there but we have his lessons. Only if we can maintain our faith in non-violence, satyagraha, sacrifice, love, compassion and tolerance, can we liberate the country from every crisis.

(The author is an independent commentator based in Raigarh, Chhattisgarh.)

Courtesy: Junputh