Thiruvananthapuram: Congress president and incumbent Wayanad MP Rahul Gandhi has written to Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan to provide assistance to the family of a farmer who committed suicide allegedly due to non-repayment of loans, and also conduct an inquiry into the matter.
The development comes after suicide of 53-year-old Dinesh Kumar, a farmer this week.
In his letter to the CM, Gandhi said that after speaking to Kumar's wife, he learnt that the farmer was under severe stress due to his inability to repay the loans and that forced him to commit suicide.
Gandhi wrote, “Dinesh's case is not an isolated one. There has been a spate of farmer suicides in Wayanad due to an inability to repay loans.”
In his letter, the Congress president added that though the state government has announced a moratorium on farm loans till December 2019, farmers are still being pressurised by loan collection agents.
He requested an enquiry into the circumstances surrounding Kumar's death and also asked the state to extent financial support to the bereaved family.
Farm distress has been a major issue in Wayanad especially following the floods in 2018.
CM Vijayan later responded to Rahul's request and said that he has sought a report from the administration.
.@RahulGandhi, Wayanad MP, requested an enquiry into a farmer suicide case. Have asked the DC to submit a report. Also, the loans from commercial banks come under the SARFAESI Act & it's for the GoI to take a stand. We hope that he will join us in raising the issue in parliament— Pinarayi Vijayan (@vijayanpinarayi) May 31, 2019
Comments
0 comment