Congress on Friday posed seven questions to Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on alleged failed promises, farmers’ suicide and scams in the state. The BJP-led government in Madhya Pradesh is antifarmer and the state was witnessing a 21 per cent rise annually in cases of farmers’ suicides since 2013, said AICC national media incharge Randeep Surjewala here on Friday. In a series of questions to Chouhan, Surjewala asked why farmers were committing suicide in the state.
Citing a report tabled in Parliament this year, Congress national spokesperson said that the state ranks 3rd in cases of farm suicide in the nation. “If all is hunky dory in Madhya Pradesh, then why is there a 21 per cent annual rise in farmers’ suicides since 2013,” questioned Congress spokesperson while addressing media persons here. He asked if the state government as claimed is all out for the farmers then why they were committing suicide.
Raising questions on the Chouhan’s government failed promises, Surjewala asked: Why the promise made to the farmers on providing the coast of the produce plus 50 per cent profit had turned into a ‘Jumla’. Why the CM had stopped giving Rs 150 bonus to the farmers after Narendra Modi became the Prime Minister, he asked. What happened to the claim of the government about the Basmati rice Geo tagging, inquired Surewala, seeking to know its status. Targeting the government over the infamous Mandsaur incident that left six farmers dead in police firing, the Congress leader asked the government: Where are the killers of the farmers and what action has been taken into the matter.
Alleging that the BJP government was riddled with corruption, Surjewala said that Congress on coming to power would constitute ‘Jan Ayaog’, to look into the scams and corruption charges. He reiterated the Congress’ poll promise of farm loan waivers if it came to power in MP. He said that while the Congress- led UPA government had waived off farm loans worth Rs 72,000 crore, the Modi government had written off debts of Rs 3.17 lakh crore of its industrialist friends.
Why is the government not waiving off loans of 62,000 farmers in the country, he questioned. On the NPA question, he replied that when the UPA government had handed the reign to NDA the total NPA was Rs 2,63,000 lakh crore, but in last 4.5 years it has increased to over Rs 12 lakh crore.
