People's Democracy

HARYANA

Successful Mobilization Against Price-Rise

Sandeep Singh

HUNDREDS of activists belonging to the Left parties recently blocked the administrative buildings and courted arrest all over the state of Haryana, in order to build pressure on the state and centre governments to ensure food security and control rising prices of essential commodities. This was the second phase of the agitation the Left parties are conducting in the state. Those who offered themselves for arrest included a large number of women.

During this agitation, protesters succeeded in compelling the administration to arrange police vehicles for arresting the volunteers at Hisar, Jind, Bhiwani and Rohtak.

In Fatehabad, the deputy commissioner had fixed January 5 for taking up an issue to issue discussion with a delegation of the Left parties. In Jind, the sub-divisional magistrate listened to the protesters� grievances regarding the public distribution system (PDS) and other burning issues including the local level issues. In the remaining districts, concerned officials refused to arrest the protestors in spite of their continuous picketing of government offices. According to the reports received, over ten thousand volunteers took part in the anti-price rise protest and courted arrest.

Apart from the anger caused by the fast rising prices of food items, there prevailed among the people deep resentment over the Ruchika episode. In the latter case, a former Haryana DGP was given only a nominal punishment for molesting Ruchiks Girhotra, a young tennis player who had to end her life under extreme pressure exerted by SPS Rathor in order to force the complainants to withdraw the case.

In these protest actions, participants also adopted resolutions criticising the state government�s  move to hand over electricity distribution to private companies.

CPI(M) state secretary Inderjit Singh, its state secretariat members Balbir Singh Dahiya, Surender Singh Malik and Virender Malik, and party leaders Harpal Singh, Phool Singh Seokand, Krishna Sawaroop, Ram Kumar, Shakuntala Jakhar, Pradeep Kumar, Ramchander Siwach, and CPI state secretary Raghubir Chaudhury, its state council members Dariyav Singh Kasyap, Satpal Beniwal and Swarn Singh Virk, among others, led these actions.

Earlier, December 4 was observed as Chetawani Divas, when the Left parties submitted their  demands charter to the state government through the district collectors. During the first phase of this agitation, dharnas and other protest actions were organised in 50 blocks from December 7 to 14.