Farmer leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal ends indefinite fast at Kisan Mahapanchayat

“Personally, I was not in favour of ending the hunger strike but since April 3, I have attended four Kisan Mahapanchayats and received messages from thousands of farmers from across the country and abroad. All have expressed their sentiments, urging me to end my fast. Respecting the sentiments of the farmer community, I am concluding my indefinite hunger strike today,” he said.

“However, I pledge to travel across the country and intensify the movement for an MSP guarantee law. Until my last breath, I will continue fighting for the rights of farmers,” Dallewal said.

Following the announcement, an “ardas (prayer)” was offered at the Mahapanchayat for Dallewal to recover soon, according to Abhimanyu Kohar, spokesperson of SKM (non-political).

“After the ardas, he received holy water and prasad from the head granthi of the historic Gurudwara Baba Zorawar Singh Ji – Baba Fateh Singh Ji of Sirhind. He has now been admitted to a Ludhiana hospital for medical consultation. He will be introduced to solids as per the guidance of doctors,” Kohar said.

“It was decided that we would consult doctors before starting intake as he had not been consuming solids for the past 132 days,” said Amrik Singh, a close associate of Dallewal.

Dallewal announced his decision a day after Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan issued the latest in a series of appeals by Union Ministers to end the strike. Taking to X, Chouhan wrote that “we request him to end his fast, as we will meet with the representatives of farmer organizations for discussions on the pre-scheduled date of May 4 at 11 am”.

Union MoS Ravneet Singh Bittoo had also issued a similar appeal on the same day, saying in a video message that if Dallewal is “in good health, he will be able to lead the farmers. He is a respected leader and we all have high regard for him”.

Dallewal started his hunger strike on November 26, 2024, to press 12 demands, of which seeking MSP as legal guarantee was the key. The other demands included: pension for farmers and farm labourers after the age of 60; withdrawal of cases filed during previous agitations; justice for victims of the 2021 Lakhimpur Kheri violence; a memorial for farmers who died during the agitation against the new farm laws, and compensation and jobs for their kin.

From January 18, 2025, Dallewal started availing medical assistance after being invited for a meeting with Union Ministers on February 14. However, on March 19, Dallewal and other farmers were arrested by the Punjab police in a crackdown when they were returning from a meeting with Union Ministers in Chandigarh.

“From March 19 evening till March 29 early morning, he had stopped taking medical assistance and even consuming water. He consumed water only after all the farmers were released from police custody,” said an associate. This decision drew praise last Friday from the Supreme Court which referred to him as a “genuine leader without a political agenda”.

On April 3, Dallewal was discharged from a Patiala hospital and has since been addressing Kisan Mahapanchayats in different districts of Punjab.