On the morning of 2 June, the Sarpanch of Bodawal village in Mansa, Punjab, belonging to the ruling Akali Dal accompanied by his goons brutally attacked the Punjab State President of Mazdoor Mukti Morcha (MMM) and Dalit leader, Bhagwant Samaon while he was holding a meeting of agricultural dalit workers in the village. It was while he was holding the meeting that Bodawal sarpanch Surat Singh arrived with his son and other goons and attacked Com. Bhagwant with hovels, resulting in severe head injuries. A female MNREGA worker and MMM activist was also injured in the attack when she tried to resist the attackers in order to protect comrade Bhagawnt.
Com. Bhagwant had been mobilising and organising the labourers in the Bodawal Village against the failure of the Akali Dal government to meet any of the long standing demands of the agrarian workers which included- giving possession of five-marla plots, debt waiver and also to compensate them for the loss of labour due to whitefly attacks.
The recent spate of incidents in Punjab have already shown how the police is a mute spectator in Punjab, completely failing to protect the citizens. While the police have failed to arrest the sarpanch, it is sparing no efforts to try and show that it was Com. Bhagwant who tried to instigate the workers against the government. It is extremely shameful that the local sarpanch and police are acting as musclemen of the ruling Akali Dal. While the state government has no response to the distraught condition of the labourers, it has now become intolerant to the extent that any effort to organise a protest against its anti-poor policies is met by a brutal oppression. Criminalisation and oppression of voices of struggle and dissent have become rampant under the state and Central governments. To protest against the attack on com. Bhagwant and demand the arrest of the attackers a joint protest ‘Lalkaar Rally’ has been called by the MMM and Punjab Kisan Union.
