BJP's great dilemma over farm laws: Bend, back off or battle it out?

The government is trying to strike a balance between ruling out withdrawal of the bills altogether and promising to tweak it to mollify the farmers

The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government at the Centre seems to be in a dilemma on whether to bend and yield to the demands of protesters over the farm laws, back off or battle it out.

The farmers' protest has entered the 14th day and the Opposition parties are trying to create a 2015 land bill moment, having supported a Bharat Bandh, taking a delegation to the President and demanding a special Parliament session to discuss the issue.

The government is trying to strike a balance between ruling out withdrawal of the laws altogether and promising to tweak it to mollify the farmers on the streets. The BJP is declaring that its victory in the recent election results in a dozen states suggest that the farm laws had the farmers' backing.

Farmers' protest live updates on DH

Wednesday's results of Panchayat polls in Rajasthan in which the BJP has made substantial gains denting the support base of the ruling Congress have only added to this narrative. The BJP bagged 1,989 of the 4,371 panchayat seats, which is 137 more than Congress.

On a day when the government proposed a written assurance that the existing Minimum Support Price (MSP) regime for procurement will continue, the Rajasthan results came as a shot in the arm which the BJP described as "farmers' mandate". This is perceived to help the BJP battle the crisis of perception it is facing in agriculture-dominated states of Punjab and Haryana.

"This victory is a symbol of the trust the poor, the villagers, the farmers and labourers' repose in Prime Minister Narendra Modi," BJP chief J P Nadda tweeted. Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar claimed that the results indicate this is a "farmers’ mandate and a vote for farm reforms".

Read: Farmers reject govt proposal on farm laws, will intensify protest on December 14

After meeting a group of farmer leaders supporting the agriculture laws on Monday, Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar had expressed confidence that the government will "handle" the agitations.

However, two days later, on Wednesday after Bharat Bandh, the government hastened to break the logjam bringing in new proposals. With farmers rejecting even the fresh proposals, a further climbdown by the government is expected as it cannot afford to keep the pot of farm politics boiling when elections in a number of states are just months away.