Probe ordered as farmers allege ‘loan waiver scam’
BHARATPUR: The sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) of Deeg in Bharatpur district has seized loan waiver records of village cooperative societies and cooperative banks after farmers complained of irregularities.
“Some farmers complained about irregularities in loan waiver. Action will be taken against officials involved after an inquiry,” SDM Sher Singh Luhadiya said.
About 390 farmers from Sehu and Parmadra villages said they had been listed as loan waiver beneficiaries, though they had not taken loans from cooperative banks. Early last year, famers said, they got messages on their mobile numbers about their debt waiver after the then BJP government waived farmers’ loans.
Since the farmers had not taken loans from the cooperative bank, they approached e-mitra centres i n t heir villages t o enquire about the waiver. They found that their names figured in the government portal as loan waiver beneficiaries. The villagers alleged that cooperative society bank secretary Kishan Singh in Dhamaari gram panchayat has embezzled around ₹1 crore farmers’ deposits.
Hundreds of farmers had earlier appealed to district collector Aarushi Malik to take action against Kishan Singh. Farmers alleged that after they opened their cooperative bank accounts last year, Kishan Singh had kept their passbooks and cheque books with their signatures.
Sarv Sukh, 60, from Naahra Chauth village said they came to know from the government website that there were debts against their names though none of the farmers had availed of loans.
Lekhraj Si ngh, 7 2 , f r om Suhera village said, “Our online bank accounts in the cooperative bank were opened by secretary Kishan Singh and he kept all our bank passbooks and cheque books with our signatures.”
Vi l l a g e r s c l a i med that 70-year-old Rajpal Singh from Naahra Chauth died of heart attack after he heard about his bank loan. Mangu Mev from Domraki village in Sikri area said, “I have not taken any loan from the cooperative bank but details of my loan waiver are shown on the government portal.” Farmer leader Nem Singh said, “Hundreds of farmers from the district are approaching secretaries about the loan waiver scam. We are demanding that government set up investigation into the scam.”
Village cooperatives, or gram sewa sahkari samitis (GSS), are members of cooperative banks. Loans are provided to farmers by the cooperative banks – there are 29 in the state – through sahkari samitis. There are 265 sahkari aamitis in Bharatpur and 84 in Dholpur district.