Chief Minister’s crop loan waiver a gimmick to deceive ryots, says Stalin
DMK president and Leader of Opposition MK Stalin on Sunday said that the crop loan waiver announcement by Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami was just a gimmick to deceive the farmers. The same CM appealed against a decree of the High Court, which ordered waiver of all farm loans earlier, challenging it before the Supreme Court, he said.
Speaking during the ‘Ungal Thoguthiyil Stalin’ campaign at Sankarankoil in Tenkasi, the DMK president said, Chief Minister’s crop loan waiver announcement would certainly not benefit small and marginal farmers, but for those in the ruling party keeping cooperative societies under their control.
It’s only an announcement and that too at the fag end of the AIADMK’s regime. Further, Stalin asked whether the Chief Minister became aware of farmers’ grievances and legitimate concerns only late in his regime.
When DMK came to power in 2006, loans obtained by farmers to the tune of Rs 7,000 crore from cooperative and nationalised banks for crop, tractor and jewel were waived. But, now the CM has announced a waiver for crop loans alone and was uncertain whether it would benefit real farmers. Not only farmers, but the entire state is suffering and to save and retrieve Tamil Nadu, he boycotted the Legislative Assembly and came to the people’s forum, said Stalin.
During his campaign in Virudhunagar, Stalin came down heavily on the Chief Minister saying with intent of swindling public money, tenders for projects through PWD and Water Resources Department to the tune of Rs 2,855 crore were made in a hasty manner by CM in the last three months. It has nothing to do with people’s welfare, but, for personal gains of the ruling politicians, he added.