Bhopal: Two days after the Centre hiked the minimum support price for paddy by a record Rs 200 per quintal, former president of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) Pravin Togadia on Friday called the MSP revision a policy that only seeks to “maintain the number of suicides committed by debt-ridden farmers”.
“The BJP in its pre-poll promise of 2014 had assured to revise MSP on the basis of C2 cost, which has not been done by the central government when it revised the procurement prices of various crops recently,” said the former VHP leader, who spoke to the media along with Shivkumar Sharma ‘Kakkaji’, the national president of Rashtriya Kisan Mazdur Sangh.
“It’s breach of promise by the Centre and a policy which aims to maintain the number of suicides committed by debt-ridden farmers,” he alleged, adding that due to flawed policies of the Centre, around ten lakh farmers ended their lives and the farmers were burdened by Rs 10 lakh-loans.
Had the MSP revision took place on the basis if C2 cost, paddy’s prices would have been fixed at Rs 2,500 per quintal and prices of other 15 crops would have seen upward surge of 40%, claimed the firebrand leader.
Asked about his newly found association with the farmers, Togadia claimed he was always with the farmers but earlier he was forced to keep his views restricted, but now he is “free to lift farmer’s plough”. The MSP has only been given to six per cent farmers, he alleged.
“MSP is not something that the farmers are given as donation out of mercy, it is their right,” the former VHP leader said. He further warned that if the government did not fulfil their assurance, they would not “struggle to forcibly take their rights, but will dethrone the government”.
He, however, declined to speak on other issues, including his new outfit, saying it would deviate attention from the much-needed farmer’s issue.
President Rashtriya Kisan Mazdur Sangh Shivkumar Sharma ‘Kakkaji’ also termed the MSP revision as an eyewash and pre-election sop.
He flayed the imposition of 28% GST levied on agri-equipments.
The mahasangh plans to take out two pro-farmers’ yatars. The first one would be undertaken from Kashmir to Kanyakumari with the participation of 162 farmers’ bodies while the second one would traverse entire MP in which mahasangh volunteers and farmers would take out rally on tractors sowing banners scripted with the anti-farmer policies of Shivraj government.
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