‘Farmers suicide in a day exposes fraudulent loan waiver plan of Cong Govt’

Taking on the ruling Congress, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Wednesday said that the suicide of five distressed farmers in a single day had exposed the Congress government’s “fraudulent” farm loan waiver scheme, besides how “kurki” (recovery) proceedings against marginal farmers were forcing farmers to take the extreme step.

“The very fact that five farmers chose to end their lives after claims of the Congress government that its supposed loan waiver exercise is a success had thoroughly exposed the Congress party,” said the former minister Bikram Singh Majithia.

He said that according to facts, more suicides were happening in districts like Bathinda, where four farmers ended their lives, and Sangrur where one farmer committed suicide, where the fake loan waiver scheme is initiated by the Congress government. These districts have also witnessed an increase in suicides in the last few months with total suicides in little more than one year tenure of the Congress going up to 450.”

Majithia said that it had also come to light that the suicide rate was increasing because the State Cooperative Department had started kurki proceedings to attach the land of small farmers who had accumulated small debts of Rs two to Rs five lakh. 

Stating that SAD was with the distressed peasantry, Majithia said that the party would not let any government agency execute kurki proceedings against any farmer. “SAD would also stand by Dalits and khet mazdoor facing kurki proceedings because the government has failed to come to their aid and waive off their debts,” he said.