Sham loan waiver functions won’t heal the festering wound of farmers: Bhagwant Mann

Chandigarh, February 6: Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has dubbed the Captain Amarinder Singh-led government’s loan waiver functions in the state as a wasteful extravaganza without substance, which, it said, won’t heal the festering wounds of the farmers in the state. In a statement issue from party headquarters in Chandigarh here on Wednesday, Punjab unit chief of the party and Sangrur MP Bhagwant Mann denounced the hosting of such celebratory functions involving lakhs of rupees,

saying the state government had miserably failed to live up to its poll commitments it made to the distressed farming community on complete loan waiver. Mann said that it was nothing but a cover up to the failures of the government and to distract peoples’ mind from the core issues forcing the farmers to spend sleepless nights.  

 Referring to a similar loan waiver function at Bathinda, Mann alleged that rupees eleven lakh were  reportedly splurged on hosting a massive function where the amount was spent on arranging food and entertainment for the gathering, besides expenses incurred on security arrangements etc. Mann said the government should, instead of holding such sham functions, delve deeper into the malaise and nail it once and for all.

He further said that had the government been serious about the plight of the farmers in the state, a large number of farmers would not have been forced to commit suicides. Putting the record straight, Mann said that as many as 430 farmers had committed so far during the two-year term of the Capt government, which was a matter disgrace. He demanded that Capt should seek apology from the public, especially the farming community, for driving it into the debt marsh.        

He made the party’s standpoint on the issue clear, stating the AAP had always steadfastly stood behind the community and had fought for their rights, be it the Parliament or the state Assembly, and would continue to voice its concern till the community was bailed out of the debt loan trap.

He called upon the Captain government to come clean on the issue surrounding the farmers and come out with concrete roadmap to redress them sooner than later so that suicides being committed by the farmers, day in and day out, could be saved. He advised captain to shun resorting to such cheap political ploys to earn public blah-blah and deliver on what he had promised to the beleaguered community in the state.