Commenting on the controversial statement of Textile Minister Shivanand Patil recently that has drawn flak from Opposition and farmers’ groups, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said that one had to be not only careful when speaking on farmers but should also be respectful.
“To be careful and respectful should be the code always. Farmers should not be insulted by loose talks,” the Chief Minister said in a social media post on Tuesday. “I am sure that Mr. Patil, who comes from a farmers family, did not intend to insult farmers. He must have said a few things taking his proximity with farmers around him for granted,” he said, adding that the statement was in any case unacceptable.
Mr. Patil had said that farmers wish for repeated droughts that could result in loan waiver, drawing sharp criticism from the Opposition BJP.
The Chief Minister said, however, that the BJP that does not care for farmers’ welfare and was using this opportunity to create a controversy. “What moral right do BJP leaders have to talk about the issue when they in the past ordered firing on farmers who demanded seeds and fertilizers? Another leader had asked if the government had note printing machine when farmers asked for loan waiver,” he said.
Mr. Siddaramaiah further asked, “What have BJP leaders, who are shedding crocodile tears, done for farmers? We are the genuine friends of farmers. The schemes that we have implemented in the last six months shows our love towards farmers.”
Listing out farmer friendly schemes that his government has implemented in the drought-hit year, he said that though Union government has not released money for farmers welfare, the State government has released ₹2,000 to every farmer family, and have taken steps to restructure mid-term and long-term loans in cooperative sector. “The country witnessed what BJP government at the Centre did to bring the anti farmer farm laws despite farmers seeking loan waiver in nationalised banks. Farmers have understood the BJP’s effort to mortgage the farm sector to the corporate sector. Just to mask their failures, BJP leaders keep attempting to create controversies,” he said.
