Some of the women leaders who have stood up have, over the past year, as men, young and old, departed Delhi and elsewhere to protest the laws, back home, a largely invisible force at the other end. Captured – their wives, mothers, daughters and daughters-in-law, who worked in the fields and looked after the families. Nevertheless, there were many women who took the lead, joined the movement and led the way.
Malan Kaur, 70
Kaur, general secretary of the women’s wing of BKU Ugrahan in Bathinda district, who never went to school, says her son’s teacher inspired her son and later to speak up for farmers and their rights. Since 2004, she has been a part of the women’s wing of BKU Ugrahan.
Kaur was 60 when she first went on stage to speak. Since then, she has inspired many women in Bathinda to move out of their homes. “I cannot read or write so I listen to recorded videos or ask my daughters-in-law to read to me. That’s how I learned more about agricultural laws.”
Jasbir Kaur Natt, 60
Jasbir, a state committee member of Punjab Kisan Morcha, has been managing the stage at Tikri border since the first week of December last year.
Jasbir, who retired as a clerk from the Electricity Board, says, “I stayed in Tikri for so long and went home only once to see my ailing mother.
Harinder Kaur Bindu, 42
Harinder, the vice-president of BKU Ugrahan, a resident of village Ramgarh Bhagtuana in Faridkot district of Punjab, has been associated with the farmers’ union for more than 16 years. “I am a farmer, a mother, a daughter. But from June 2020, I have only one objective: to repeal agricultural laws. My teenage son once came to meet me at the Tikri border. I miss them. But you need to sacrifice something to set an example for others,” she says.
Balbir Kaur Sidhu, 40
A lawyer by profession, Balbir is in-charge of the Mansa unit of BKU Dakonda. “Women were not very active and there was hardly any women’s wing in the farmers’ unions. I joined BKU Dakonda in 2010. Today, most villages in Mansa have women’s shakhas of agricultural associations. I was able to mobilize many women to come out of their homes and go to Delhi to protest. Many of them also lead the front in Punjab. Our hard work has paid off.”
Surjit Kaur Aklia, 75
Surjit Kaur, a member of Mansa unit of BKU Dakonda of Akalia village of Mansa, is included in Singhu’s langar committee. “Both my sons are farmers. I stayed in Delhi for 70 days and came home only on 7th March. After that, I kept going for short periods,” says Kaur, who spoke on the mic for the first time during the protest in Delhi. “I’ve never been to school and didn’t think I’d be able to…
I got this strength after the start of this struggle.”
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