Tamil Nadu Farmers' Protest - The New Way

TN Farmers Protest – The New Way When you hear the word protest, an image of a leader speaking on stage and crowds shouting slogans condemning the State comes to our mind. In some cases there are even acts of violence. It was not the same in the Spring of 2017. Tamil Nadu farmers at Jantar Mantar have given a whole new meaning to the word protest by carrying skulls and wearing only a single piece of green cloth to cover themselves. Occupying a small stretch of road, the handful of farmers could have been ignored for being another protest group but not when you innovate every day. Then you are bound to get noticed! What attracted my attention was the unusual start to the protest, eating dead rats and snakes. The ante was upped by enacting the plight of farmers through the drama of death, shaving half heads and moustaches, and tying ropes around necks. This new way of protest garnered more support from all quarters –political parties, farmer associations and local Tamil community, maintaining pressure on the government to listen to their demands – a) Loan Waiver, b) Drought relief support to the tune of Rs. 40,000 crores, c) Profitable price for crops, d) Interlinking of Cauvery with other national rivers, and e) Old age pension. Even though the government representatives – Finance and Home Minister – had expressed inability to meet their demands, they continued to press their demand and sought to meet the Prime Minister. By projecting the Prime Minister’s unwillingness to meet, his penchant to click selfies through daily protest plays, the government was forced to re-iterate it’s demand they stop the protest. Fearing that the government would not budge and confident that they would continue to get media attention, a graceful exit was made with a promise to return. Currently, farmers from different states are uniting and trying to arrive at a common front and raise their voice collectively.