With loan waiver clarion call, Congress ignites farm protest
DEMANDS Oppn wants govt to increase MSP and announce bonus for farmers
The Rajasthan Pradesh Congress Committee (RPCC) held a statewide protest on Wednesday demanding farm loan waiver, increase in Minimum Support Price (MSP) and bonus to farmers.
Hitting at the BJP, state Congress president Sachin Pilot said that the BJP had made big promises during the elections but after coming to power they have neglected the farmers, which has worsened their condition leading to suicide. “The tenure of the state BJP government has been unfortunate and the condition of farmers is worrisome,” he said.
Addressing a public meeting at Sikar, he said that the Congress has always stood for the farmers and their rights. “The unfulfilled promises and anti-farmers policies of the BJP have angered farmers,” he said.
Pilot alleged that “It is the BJP government and their anti-policies, which are responsible for such a poor state of farmers. Never in the history of Rajasthan has such a condition occurred that farmers have to commit suicide. But government neglect has put pressure on them. During the BJP’s tenure, 61 farmers have committed suicide. Across the country, every 41 minutes a farmer is committing suicide.”
He said that farmers are suffering from many problems but the BJP neither a minister nor a leader has looked into it. “When the Congress was in governance, the opposition (BJP) used to blame. Even now when the BJP is in power they are blaming the Congress. The fact is that BJP is such a party where no one wants to hear farmers’ grievance or raise their issues. The BJP leaders’ attitude has shown that they have nothing to do with farmers and they are just a vote bank for them.”
Condemning the Mandsaur (Madhya Pradesh) incident, Pilot said that the situation in the country is such that farmers cannot even raise their voice for their rights. When AICC vice-president Rahul Gandhi went to meet the farmers he was stopped and arrested.
Speaking on the occasion, state party in-charge and AICC general secretary Avinash Pande said that under the BJP government, farmers are suffering across the country. “Our priority is to serve the common man, poor, labourer and farmers. Congress will continue holding agitations and demonstrations to corner the government. We will bind the government to hear farmers’ plea and provide relief,” he said.
In Jaipur, district president Pratap Singh Khachariyawas said that the state and central governments are trying to suppress the farmers’ voice though laathi and bullet. In Rajasthan assembly, the chief minister promised compensation for crop damage, but till date, nothing has been done. “The Congress will continue its agitation till farmers’ loans are waived off. Wherever the CM, minister and BJP leaders will visit, we will protest and ghearo. If any problems crop up then the government will be responsible for it,” he said.
In Bundi, the police used mild force on protesting Congress workers who were trying to forcibly enter the district collector’s office. The workers were on their way to submit a memorandum to the collector, when the police stopped them and asked only one person to proceed, which led to the stand-off.
The police used mild force to disperse the workers, in which a local leader suffered injuries and was later hospitalised.