Kukshi (Madhya Pradesh): Local Congress leader and former MLA representative Rajendra Patidar launched a fresh salvo on BJP leaders a day after the latter accused the former of misleading local farmers.
Addressing reporters in Kukshi, Patidar asked BJP leaders to return farmers' money collected in the name of water and warned of a massive agitation.
Earlier on Monday, BJP state secretary Jaideep Patel held a press conference in Kolgaon village under the Kukshi assembly constituency and accused sitting Congress MLA Honey Singh Baghel and ex-MLA representative Rajendra Patidar of misleading the farmers.
Patel demanded Baghel and Patidar tender an unconditional apology or face the consequences. Meanwhile, Rajendra Patidar hit back at the BJP leader, stating that when the dam water was released, why farmers weren’t informed that the dam water would be released into the river and they would have to pay to irrigate their field.
He further said that the BJP leaders were yet to submit money collected from farmers into government treasury. He said that the BJP leaders should either return the money or show receipt of its being deposited in government treasury.
Patidar said that the matter came to fore after he made the video viral. Later, Kukshi MLA Surendsingh Honey Baghel and farmers of Kukshi took cognizance and forwarded the video to the water resources department.
As soon as the video was circulated, a few farmers got their money back, he claimed Patidar said that he came to know from sources that the money paid by farmers who used dam water for the rabi crop was not deposited within the time limit.
In May and June 2023, the revenue staff had not issued any written order for recovery of water for irrigation purposes. Still, BJP leader and mandal president Devendra Patidar collected money from the farmers.
He added that as per the rule, the money was taken per hectare. The more the irrigation area, the more its charges, but the BJP leader charged Rs 1,200 from each of the farmers.
When MLA representative Sudama Patidar called Water Resource Department’s executive engineer in Manawar on his mobile and asked whether the department had ordered in writing that BJP mandal president Devendra Patidar Dhulsar would recover Rs 1200 from the farmers, he said that no order was issued in the month of May-June regarding recovery of money from his office.
Besides, BJP mandal president Devendra Patidar too had not been authorized to collect money from the farmers.
