The Federation of Cane Growers was formed as an umbrella organisation to negotiate the new cane contract due to take effect from 1960 with the Colonial Sugar Refining Company

Colonial Sugar Refining Company (Fiji)

The Colonial Sugar Refining Company began operations in Fiji in 1880 and until it ceased operations in 1973, had a considerable influence on the political and economic life of Fiji. Prior to its expansion to Fiji, the CSR was operating Sugar Refineries in Melbourne and Auckland...

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Negotiations for 1960 cane contract

Talks on the new contract started on 5 January 1960. The farmers’ representatives were K.S. Reddy, P.G. Shankar, Ram Niwaz, Ranga Reddy and S.M. Koya

Sidiq Koya

Siddiq Moidin Koya was a Fijian Indian politician and Opposition leader. He succeeded to the leadership of the mostly Indo-Fijian National Federation Party on the death of the party's founder, A.D. Patel, in October 1969, remaining in this post until 1977...

, representing the Maha Sangh

Maha Sangh

Akhil Fiji Krishak Maha Sangh was a sugar cane farmers' union formed on 15 June 1941 in opposition to the existing union, the Kisan Sangh. Supporters of Kisan Sangh tried to stop the formation of the Maha Sangh but were unsuccessful. The people responsible for the formation of a second sugar cane...

, Ram Swami Pillay, Shankaran Nair and Ram Narain representing a second faction of the Maha Sangh, Shiu Dutt, Biryam Singh, Bechu Prasad, Y. Subramaniam and A.D. Patel

A.D. Patel

Ambalal Dahyabhai Patel, better known as A.D. Patel, was a Fiji Indian politician, farmers' leader and founder and leader of the National Federation Party. Patel was uncompromisingly committed to a vision of an independent Fiji, with full racial integration...

 representing the Vishal Sangh

Vishal Sangh

Vishal Sangh was a cane farmers union established in Fiji on 1 September 1946, by mainly Sikh farmers, who refused to re-join the Kisan Sangh after its reunification following the split of the Kisan Sangh into two factions in 1943...

, Vijay R. Singh

Vijay R. Singh

Sir Vijay Raghubar Singh, KBE was an Indo-Fijian lawyer and politician who held Cabinet office in the 1960s and 1970s. Vijay Singh served in Prime Minister Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara's government in a variety of positions, including Attorney-General, and was President of the Indian Alliance, a...

 and Girwar Prasad representing the Labasa Kisan Sangh

Labasa Kisan Sangh

The Kisan Sangh had been active in the Western Division of Fiji since 1937 but had not seen the need to expand its activities to other sugar cane growing districts because of transportation problems and the fact that the other districts combined had far fewer cane farmers thatn the Western Division...

, and J.P. Bayly, Shiu Nath, Abdul Gani

Abdul Gani

Major Abdul Gani was a Bengali military officer.-Early life:Gani was born in Burichang Upazila of Comilla District, Bengal . He studied in Comilla, and later in Calcutta, where, in 1940, he graduated from Calcutta Islamia College.-Military career:Abdul Gani joined the British Indian Army in 1941,...

 and Ayodhya Prasad

Ayodhya Prasad

Ayodhya Prasad Sharma was an Indo-Fijian farmers’ leader and politician, who formed the most successful farmers’ union in Fiji and forced the Colonial Sugar Refining Company to make concessions to farmers after 60 years of complete control over Fiji’s economy...

 representing the Kisan Sangh

Kisan Sangh

Kisan Sangh was the first farmers' union formed in Fiji on 27 November 1937. This was the result of one man's determination to improve the plight of Fiji's Indian cane farmers...

. The united front did not last as the two Kisan Sanghs accepted the contract offered by the Company while the Maha Sanghs and Vishal Sangh opposed it and called their members out on strike. There were many cases of intimidation, damage to property burning of sugar cane. The crushing of sugar cane which normally begins in May was delayed until October and the growers suffered huge losses. Security forces were called out to break the strike. A Commission of Inquiry was set up and the growers were obliged to accept a contract that protected the millers from any financial risk and left the farmers with a worse outcome than they had had in the last contract.

From union to political party

The supporters of the 1960 strike put up candidates in the sugar cane districts in the 1963 Legislative Council

Legislative Council (Fiji)

The Fijian Legislative Council was the colonial precursor to the present-day Parliament, which came into existence when Fiji became independent on 10 October 1970.-The first Legislative Council:...

 election

Elections in Fiji

Fiji has held nine general elections for the House of Representatives since becoming independent of the United Kingdom in 1970; there had been numerous elections under colonial rule, but only one with universal suffrage . In this period, Fiji has had three constitutions, and the voting system has...

 under the banner of Citizens Federation and all won by large margins. The Federation of Cane Growers members of Legislative Council, together with other like-minded individuals formed the Federation Party

National Federation Party (Fiji)

The National Federation Party is a Fijian political party founded by A.D. Patel in November 1968, as a merger of the Federation Party and the National Democratic Party...

in 1964.The name was later changed to National Federation Party with the inclusion of two minor ethnic Fijian parties. Until 1987, the Federation of Cane Growers was the main farmers' union in Fiji, while the National Federation Party was the main party of the Fiji Indians.