Chandigarh: MLAs belonging to the Jannayak Janata Party (JJP), the alliance partner of the ruling BJP in Haryana, came out in support of the farmers’ agitation on Sunday, stating that the government should consider repealing the laws given the protesting farmers’ demands.
JJP MLA Ram Kumar Gautam said that the government should bring the laws to an end as the farmer community is entirely in opposition to them. MLAs Amarjeet Dhanda and Ishwar Singh also spoke in support of the agitation, mentioning their association with the farming community.
The remarks made by the JJP members indicated that the government’s refusal to consider the farmers’ demands might be harmful for the BJP-JJP alliance in Haryana. Meanwhile, political experts are of the opinion that this coming together of JJP legislators is part of the party’s strategy for damage control as the JJP – which has a huge vote bank among the farmers’ community – has been inviting criticism from both farmers and the opposition for remaining quiet on the issue so far.
In a meeting held in Jind on December 5, khaps in Haryana announced a “social boycott” of all the leaders who are supporting the government on the issue, including Deputy Chief Minister and JJP senior leader Dushyant Chautala, BJP MP Brijender Singh and his father and former central minister, Chaudhary Birender Singh.
However, even though JJP members have mostly refrained from remarking on the protests, some have been speaking up in support of the farmers. At the end of November, Jogi Ram Sihag outrightly rejected the post of Haryana Housing Board Chairman, to protest the three farm laws. Senior leader Ajay Chautala and son, Digvijay Chautala, have also made comments in support of the farmers since then.
Apart from them, three independent MLAs – Balraj Kundu, Somveer Sangwa and Dharam Pal Gonder elected from Mahem, Charkhi Dadri and Nilokheri, respectively – have come out openly in support of the protesting farmers.