By Jeevan Mathew Kurian, IANS
Mukkom (Kerala) : The cacophony of discord is often a hallmark of politics, but if you travel to Mukkom you will be struck by an unusual show of harmony by various political outfits in Kerala in opposing a Reliance retail outlet.
In the heart of this small town, about 600 km from state capital Thiruvananthapuram in Kozhikode district, one can see a thatched shed in front of a building where Reliance plans to open the outlet.
The shed has become a rallying point for those opposing “monopolies” and “the policy of globalisation” and is adorned with a bunch of flags representing almost all political outfits in the state.
The protest at Mukkom began seven months ago and soon became a popular movement in the area. The agitators had erected the shed in July to prevent the company from undertaking any work to open the outlet and are maintaining round-the-clock vigil at the site.
A large crowd prevented the authorities from removing the shed on Nov 21.
The agitation here is being spearheaded by the Anti-Monopoly People’s Movement (AMPM), which was floated in March 2007.
“The agitation in Mukkom is the first organised resistance against the entry of retail giants in the country. It was our action that inspired those in Uttar Pradesh and Orissa to protest the retail companies,” claimed A. Subair, one of the conveners of the AMPM and a district committee member of the youth wing of the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S).
The agitation was first launched by two traders’ organisations, which were apprehensive about losing their market to the retail chains. But by April they handed over the leadership of the AMPM to political parties.
“It is unusual to see people voluntarily handing over important positions to others. The leaders of the movement used to get a lot of media attention. But without any qualms they handed over the responsibilities to political leaders to take forward the agitation. This shows people’s commitment towards the cause,” said Malik Nalakath, owner of an optical shop at Mukkom and an active AMPM worker.
“Our organisation is a people’s movement. It has representations from all political and social organisations. The chairman belongs to the Janata Dal. The treasurer represents the Jamaat-e-Islami. I belong to the Congress,” said N.K. Abdurehman, the general convener of the organisation, who earlier worked as a state functionary of the Congress.
However, it seems the agitators are not ready to wage a legal battle against Reliance.
“We are not sure whether we will win a legal battle against Reliance. Many retail companies are already working in the country and you can’t have different laws in different areas. However, we have already succeeded in the conveying the message to people to oppose retail companies,” said Subair.
To strengthen its activities, AMPM has also opened units in the surrounding village panchayats.
“Our agitation has entered a new phase as Reliance has now started responding indirectly to the agitation. The owner of the building, where Reliance planned to open the outlet, has now filed a case against us demanding the removal of the shed in front of it. We suspect the hand of the company behind the move,” said Malik, who is one of the respondents in the case.
“Even after we launched the stir, Reliance continued with the work at the building. When they tried to install a freezer at the outlet, we physically prevented them. Then we decided to erect a shed to keep constant vigil,” said Mailk.
To prevent Reliance from opening the shop, the agitators have also asked the village panchayat not to issue a licence to it to run the shop.
“The panchayat can’t issue a licence to Reliance as people and traders have requested it not to give the licence,” A. Kalyanikutty, president of the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) led panchayat, told IANS.
(Jeevan Mathew Kurian can be contacted at [email protected])