शेतकरी संघटक

Summary

This is the 21 April 1995 issue (Year 12, Issue 1) of शेतकरी संघटक (Shetkari Sanghatak), the Marathi fortnightly organ of the Shetkari Sanghatana, the Maharashtra farmers’ movement led by Sharad Joshi. The issue marks the movement’s entry into its twelfth year and is built around a theme of self-examination (‘संकल्प आत्मपरीक्षणाचा’ — a resolve for self-scrutiny). Most of the contents are open letters and signed articles addressed to Sharad Joshi (‘शरदभाऊ’ / ‘मा. शरद जोशी यांसी सप्रेम नमस्कार’), reflecting on the recent 1995 Maharashtra Assembly elections in which the movement’s newly floated political party, the Swatantra Bharat Paksha (स्वतंत्र भारत पक्ष / Independent Bharat Party), contested for the first time and won two seats. Contributors — farmers and activists writing from villages across Nashik, Jalgaon, Nagpur, Pune, Solapur, Bhandara and Ahmednagar districts — debate whether the electoral result is a defeat or a beginning, whether the movement should remain an agitation (‘आंदोलन’) or become an electoral party, and urge introspection about organisational weaknesses. A recurring news item reports that Sharad Joshi has returned from hospital and his health is improving. The masthead notes the publication is a fortnightly (पाक्षिक), Regd. No. 39926/83, with editor-printer-publisher Sureshchandra Mhatre, Pune.

Essays

Essay

The lead article ‘संकल्प आत्मपरीक्षणाचा’ (A Resolve for Self-Examination) by Sureshchandra Mhatre opens the twelfth-year issue with a call for the movement to turn a critical eye on itself. Recalling the movement born in the 1983 hunger-strike at Smriti Mandir, he argues that remembrance, vows and the taking of oaths are not enough; the anniversary should be an occasion to honestly assess the movement’s failures and reorient. Adjoining short open letters to ‘शरदभाऊ’ (Sharad Joshi) from readers such as Pushpa Sandhan and Nanubai Gawali wish him well and urge him to safeguard his health after illness.

• Frames the 12th-anniversary issue around self-examination rather than celebration.
• Invokes the movement’s origin in the 1983 hunger strike (हुतात्मा स्मृतिदिन / Smriti Mandir).
• Argues remembrance and oath-taking are insufficient without honest self-criticism.
• Accompanied by open letters to Sharad Joshi urging him to protect his health.

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