Oh ! These Kisans !!
- Ra Sh
These kisans are an ungracious lot . What a bunch of ignorant fools ! We give them concessions . They say they need rights . We offer Ambani ’ s bazaar . They prefer mandis . We offer Adani warehouses . They prefer MSP . We pass bills without asking . They pass resolutions that jolt us . We praise Kisans are good for country . They troll us in wedding songs . We say your home is in villages . They pitch tents in the capital . We torpedo them with foul water . They hit back with Gurvani . We spray communal hatred . They spout the unity of tractors . We set up barbed wire barricades . They throw them in the Jamuna . We call them Khalistanis . They call us Hindu fascists . We let loose barking Kanganas . They invite her to eat Makki ki roti . We plan to call Jawans to beat them down . They say they have a Jawan in each house . We say your shit is all over the border . They say best place to shit is your Parliament . We say Jai Jawan . They say Jai kisan . We fight with batons , tear gas , lathi charges . They fight with gehun , sarson , aloo , pyaaz . Oh ! These kisans , what a hindrance to modernity ! What an uncouth loud mouth crowd , Such a spanner in the corruption wheel !
( Ra Sh is a poet based in Kerala ) August - 2022
We , the Farmers of this Country ....
- Smitha M
You shove us , you beat us , you bury us alive . Yet we , the farmers of this country are reborn like that one resolute corn plant . You cringe , you grin , you plead for our votes and notes . If WE made you win , WE can make you fall too ! We ’ re the fields , we , the crops , then why are we the prisoners of your whims that cross ? You in snazzy cars chew peanuts of our sweat , as your journals dish out rubbish . Still we feed upon justice to those geared up cops who play the second fiddle . The thicker your water cannons are , the braver our voices , our tears … You flex , you vex , you conspire next , theatrics and tactics of your lust . As we go for protests peaceful , You unleash your vicious violence on us . As Haryanvi -Punjabi fields merge to weed out your poisonous play of power , you forge our farmer finger ( foot ) prints as “ Separatists ”! Fie on you , power ! We , the soil under this country ’ s feet , sing songs of peaceful rebellion . Dictators ! Stop playing possum ! Remember . As you bootlick your corporates , we congregate , we create , we germinate , fresh seeds of revolution , Never dare to muffle us , bend us , or trap us , in your treacherous trenches . Don ’ t you see the soil swelling in our palms ? We need no alms , but for our rights our unified voices rise . Don ’ t you hear our hoarse calls , don ’ t you hear , Democracy whimpering “ REVOLUTION ?”
( This poem was written in solidarity with the farmers ’ protests in Delhi . This reflects the farmers ’ many voices who called this agitation as a political ‘ revolution .’)
Smitha M , working as an Assistant Professor in English in Government Victoria college , Palakkad , is a poet and film enthusiast whose works have been published in various online journals .)
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