Congress accuses Narendra Modi government of betraying farmers, giving loan waivers to big industrialists

New Delhi: The Congress on Thursday accused the BJP-led government at the Centre of betraying farmers by not providing them 50 percent plus minimum support price for their produce and giving loan waivers to big industrialists but not to farmers. Congress spokesperson RPN Singh said that before coming to power prime minister Narendra Modi and the BJP had promised to give farmers 50 percent plus MSP but is now dithering from doing so, even after four years in power. [caption id=“attachment_2481830” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Congress spokesperson RPN Singh. Image courtesy: PIB[/caption] He said the BJP had also mentioned this promise in their manifesto for the 2014 Lok Sabha polls but has gone back on it. Singh said that prime minister Modi in 2014, during elections, had made five big promises providing two crore jobs each year, giving farmers 50 per cent plus MSP for their produce, depositing 15 lakh into each Indian’s bank account after getting back black money stashed abroad, eradicating corruption from the root and taking strong measures at the border to ensure national security. “Today, four years after he assumed power, the PM has not kept one of the promises. Farmers, who are the backbone of our country, are suffering and are forced to commit suicides after facing apathy at the hands of the BJP government,” he told reporters. Singh claimed that while the average growth in agriculture sector during the 10 years of UPA government was 4 percent, under the BJP-led dispensation it has shown a growth of only 1.9 percent in October 2017, as per a government report. He said that even rural wages that grew 17 percent during the UPA government were currently growing by 6.5 percent. Singh claimed that farmers were suffering as they are either beaten up or fired upon in BJP-ruled states. The Congress leader also stated that while the prime minister has failed to fulfil his promises made to farmers, he is now talking of doubling farm income by 2022, which he said was aimed at “deceiving” them. He said that while the UPA gave a farm loan waiver of Rs 77,000 crore that benefited every farmer in the country, the NDA, which is earning 9 lakh crores through tax on petrol and diesel, has waived off 1.53 lakh crore loans of big industrialists but not of farmers. He alleged that 35 farmers are committing suicide every day in the country and a total of 33,000 farmers have taken their lives due to debts, but the government is not concerned about their welfare. Singh also termed the liberalisation of the FDI policy by the government a measure that would destroy the small and medium businesses in the country