The Opposition on Thursday walked out of the Maharashtra Legislative Council after claiming that a member from the ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) allegedly referred to farmers as “power stealers”.
Leader of Opposition in the Council Pravin Darekar said they had raised the issue of farmers’ electricity connections being disconnected by the state power utility. Darekar, however, said he does not remember the name of the MVA member who made the comment. Darekar said, “We wanted a discussion on the plight of farmers and sought some relief for the community.
However, an MVA member asked what about farmers who steal electricity.” He said such a question is irrelevant as farmers have been severely affected because of various restrictions imposed owing to the pandemic.
He also said that the demand for agricultural produce by cultivators has gone down, which also affected the income of farmers. Darekar also expressed disappointment with the Minister of State for energy Prajakt Tanpure. “We have called attention regarding farmers’ issues and suggestions on how the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company can come up with lenient policies for them.
Tanpure preferred to point at the Centre and its policies and tried to pass the blame,” the BJP leader said.
