58 farm suicide kin meet MLAS; women rue suffering

I have two sons who take land on lease. My constant fear is they will follow their father. We have a loan of ₹12 lakh to repay. KARAMJIT KAUR, sufferer

Each farm suicide leaves behind a trail of broken families with women, in most cases, bearing the brunt. This fact came to life with 58 families coming together to interact with elected representatives in the city on Saturday.

Farmer and Labourer Suicide Victim Families’ Committee, Punjab, had organised the meeting.

SAD MLA from Sardulgarh, Dilraj Singh Bhunder, AAP MLA from Maur, Jagdev Singh Kamalu, and state secretary of the Communist Party of India, Hardev Singh Arshi, addressed the families.

There was no Congress representative.

Earlier such programmes were held in Mansa, Sangrur and Chandigarh.

‘SUICIDE WILL SOON BE ONLY OPTION FOR US AS WELL’

Jaspal Kaur, 40, wife of late farm labourer, Jasvir Singh, of Jeeda village has been working as cleaning staff at a hospital since 2016, when her husband ended his life. She claims not to have got any compensation.

“My daughter had to be removed from school. Soon, even we may have to commit suicide,” she says. Sarabjit Kaur, 33, whose husband Jagtar Singh of Khemuana village in Bathinda, ended his life in 2013, due to a debt of ₹1.5 lakh, says, “We got no compensation.”

‘I FEAR MY 2 SONS WILL FOLLOW THEIR FATHER’

Karamjit Kaur, 50, wife of Iqbal Singh of Bhamme Kalan village in Mansa, whose husband committed suicide in 2006, says, “I have two sons who take land on lease. My constant fear is they will follow their father. We have a loan of ₹12 lakh to repay.”

She added she had joined a farm organisation to fight for her rights.

ANOTHER SUICIDE; FARMERS HANGS FROM TREE

A debt-ridden farmer, Gurwinder Singh, 48, committed suicide by hanging himself with a tree in his fields in Mian village on Saturday morning. He was under a debt of ₹12 lakh. Bathinda Sadar police have handed over the body to family after inquest.