Balbir Singh Rajewal is an Indian politician and founder of the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) Rajewal, who rose to prominence after his active participation in the 2020 Indian Farmers’ Protest. In December 2021, he became the chief ministerial candidate of the Sanyukt Samaj Morcha (SSM) Party for the 2022 Punjab Legislative Assembly elections.
Contents
Wiki/Biography
Balbir Singh Rajewal was born on Friday, 20 August 1943 (age 78; as of 2021) in Rajwal, Ludhiana, Punjab. His zodiac sign is Leo. After studying at AS Sr Sec School, Khanna in Ludhiana district of Punjab, he joined AS College, Khanna.
Physical appearance
Height (approx): 5’8″
Hair color: gray
Eye Color: Black
family
parents and siblings
Balbir Singh Rajewal was born into a Sikh family in Ludhiana, Punjab. His father, Asa Singh, was a farmer. Not much is known about the mother. He grew up with two older brothers. Rajewal’s entire family was so active in farmers’ agitation that once even his father, brothers and sister-in-law were arrested during the struggle for farm rights.
wife and children
Balbir Singh Rajewal is married. He has a son who quit his job as a commercial pilot to pursue farming.
Career
Rajwal started his career as a telegrapher, but he resigned in 1968. He is also an ex-employee of the Punjab Telephone Department. Later he started farming in his native village Rajwal in Ludhiana, Punjab. Apart from this, he is also the owner of two rice mills located near Rajwali. For some time he also worked as an “Arhtiya” (commission agent) in Khana Mandi, Ludhiana. Soon he left the profession to synchronize with the members of the Farmers’ Union. He holds the position of Chairman in the Managing Committee of Bondli-Samrala, Malwa College, a leading educational institution of the Samrala region.
Malwa College Bondli-Samrala
In his village, Rajewal runs an honesty stationery shop for students called ‘Sach Di Dukan’ (The Shop of Truth). The shop is not run by any shopkeeper. Instead, it has a box in which the user can voluntarily deposit money for purchased items.
Activism
An accomplished orator, Rajewal has been a farm union leader in Punjab since the 1970s. In 1972, a group of eleven peasants in Chandigarh joined the Punjab Khetibar Zamindars’ Union, which was later called the Punjab Khetibar Union (PKU). Rajewal was one of the founding members of the union. In December 1978, PKU was renamed Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) to form a national forum for farmers. After that, Rajewal was appointed as the secretary of BKU. At BKU, Rajewal worked with prominent Indian farmers such as Mahendra Singh Tikait, Sharad Anantrao Joshi and Narayan Swamy, who were actively involved in farmer agitation campaigns. After being associated with BKU (Lakhowal) from 1974 to 1988 and then BKU (Mann), in 2001, he launched his own outfit BKU (Rajewal). In 1974, farmers started a movement when they imposed restrictions on the sale of wheat out of state. Rajwal actively participated in the agitation against zonal restrictions on the sale of wheat. Rajewal drafted the constitution of Khetiwar Union which was adopted by BKU in 1978. He fought for electricity bill for farmers in 1983. Although various farmers’ groups broke away from BKU in 1988, Rajewal’s association with BKU remained intact. In 2013, he went on a hunger strike, demanding benefits for farmers under the drought fund and relief in mill bills. His persistence successfully fetched Rs. 800 crores for farmers.
Balbir Singh Rajewal (in orange turban) on hunger strike in 2013
In 2020, protests began against the Indian Agriculture Act, 2020, often referred to as the Farm Bills, which was initiated by the Parliament of India in September 2020. Following the introduction of the farm bills, several unions launched local protests in Punjab. After two months of protests, farmers’ unions, mostly from Punjab and Haryana, with tens of thousands of farm union members marched to the nation’s capital, Delhi, where they coordinated nonviolent resistance on the city’s borders. Various factions of BKU including BKU (Rajewal) led by Balbir Singh Rajewal joined the protest.
Farmer leaders Rakesh Tikait and Balbir Singh Rajewal at the Gazipur border during the 2020 Indian Farmers’ Protest
Earlier BKU (Rajewal) was not very organized and was mainly active in Patiala, Sangur, Mohali, Ropar, Ludhiana, Kapurthala, Hoshiarpur, Ferozepur, Nawanshahr, Jalanhar and few districts of Malwa region. However, it quickly evolved to become one of the leading farmers’ organizations in Punjab during the 2020 Indian Farmers’ Protest. BKU (Rajewal) activists picketed political leaders, especially from BJP and SAD, whenever they visited Punjab to attend any political functions or events. This led to the significant rise of Rajewal as the main farmer leader of Punjab, as earlier he was considered more of a businessman. Rajawal’s skillful representation of the farmer’s point of view played a crucial role in the negotiations with the government on the farm bills. In addition, his leadership skills will be useful in planning and executing protests. In November 2020, amid the protests, a coalition of over forty Indian farmers’ unions was formed called the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), with Rajwal as its prominent leader. During the protest, he expressed his views on the Trade and Commerce of Farmers’ Produce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020. And said that farmers have already enjoyed the right to sell their farm produce anywhere in the country since 1976. Besides, he said that the Modi government has introduced the farmer tickets precisely. Explaining the excesses of the bill, in an interview he said,
We reached an establishment in 1976 when the courts gave farmers the freedom to sell anywhere, but this government only wanted to promote corporations. The laws were not for the welfare of farmers but for the welfare of corporations”.
In a televised address on 19 November 2021, Narendra Modi announced that the government would withdraw the farm bills.
politics
Although he has shown flexibility in his political leanings over the past decades, ranging from the Congress to the Shiromani Akali Dal to the Aam Aadmi Party, he has been averse to any political involvement until the farm laws are formally repealed on 29 November 2021. Until 2002, Rajwal supported the Congress government, but some farmers refused. 110 million as compensation for mineral loss of farmers, he started an agitation against them. In 2014, the then Chief Minister, Parkash Singh Badal, offered Rajewal the post of Halka Incharge (Constituency Head) from Samrala Assembly segment, which Razewal declined as he did not want to contest the elections. In the 2017 Punjab Assembly polls, Rajewal started supporting the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and later he developed close ties with Shiromani president Akali Dal Captain Amarind Singh. As the 2022 Punjab Legislative Assembly elections approached, AAP national convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal reportedly offered Rajewal to be his CM candidate, but he declined under pressure from farmers’ unions. On 26 December 2021, twenty-two SKM factions, led by Rajewal, launched their own political front called Samyukta Samaj Morcha (SSM) and announced their intentions to contest the 2022 Punjab Legislative Assembly elections. It has been announced that SSM will contest from all constituencies in the 117-seat Punjab Assembly.
confrontations
- Accused of collecting funds from NRIs: In early December 2021, Jagjit Singh Dalewal, of Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) Sidhupur, while addressing the media, said that various factions of Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) received a lot of money from NRIs living abroad. In the video, Dalewal claimed that he did not demand a single penny from NRIs during the 2020 Indian Farmers’ Protest. In an indirect reference to Balbir Singh Rajwal, who was expected to contest the 2022 Punjab Legislative Assembly elections, Dalewal said,
Some of us really want to become the chief minister.”
Apart from this taunt, Dalewal asked the NRIs who showed generosity by donating funds during the protest to refrain from sending money to political parties to contest elections.
- Arrested for participating in various protests: Rajwal was arrested several times for raising farm issues. Rajewal was arrested during the 1974 agitation against zonal restrictions imposed on farmers for selling their wheat outside the state.
- Accused of making a secret deal with Amit Shah: On 29 December 2021, Sukhbir Singh Badal, an Indian politician and president of the Shiromani Akali Dal, alleged that Balbir Singh Rajewal had made a secret deal with Union Home Minister Amit Shah, which weakened Indian farmers’ protests. Sukhbir Singh Badal speaking to the media said:
The contents of the letter, now in the public domain, are even more shocking. They reveal that Rajewal and his inner circle were willing to sacrifice the welfare of the farmers and even agreed to partially repeal the farm laws in direct opposition to the public position of the kisan andolan (farmers’ protest) that he only agreed to the full return of the three black laws.
Asset/Properties
Balbir Singh Rajewal owns 60 acres of land in his native village of Rajwal, Ludhiana, Punjab.
Facts/Trivia
- Ironically, a few months before launching his own outfit BKU (Rajewal), Balbir Singh clashed with Haryana farmers’ leader Gurnam Singh Chaduni over his political ambitions.
- On 13 December 2021, Sahnewal Nagar Council, along with Gurdwara Reru Sahib Committee and Kar Seva Samudaye, honored Balbir Singh Rajewal for his activism during the Indian farmers’ protest.
Balbir Singh Rajewal was felicitated in December 2021 by Nagar Council President Sukhjit Singh Hara along with Kar Seva Chief Baba Major Singh.
- On 20 December 2021, Balbir Singh Rajewal was honored by Muslims at the Jama Masjid in Ludhiana, where he paid tribute to the late Shahi Imam of Punjab Maulana Habib Ur Rehman Sani Ludhiana.
Balbir Singh Rajewal to be honored by Muslim community at Ludhiana Jama Masjid in 2021
- After the formation of the new political party SSM, SKM broke away from it. The statement prohibiting the use of the SKM logo by any political party was issued by the SKM Coordination Committee.
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Source: dienchau2.edu.vn
