Terming Revanth Reddy-led Congress government’s failure on the crop loan waiver as the biggest betrayal farmers were subjected to in the state of Telangana, the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) has called for a protest across Telangana on Thursday to demand that the state government completely waive off Rs 2 lakh crop loans of all farmers without any restrictions.
Reiterating the allegation that the Congress government ‘betrayed’ farmers by not fully implementing farm loan waiver, BRS working president and former minister KT Rama Rao asked party workers to stage protests in support of the growers.
If the government failed to respond positively to the demand, he warned that the BRS would not hesitate to call for a ‘Jail Bharo’ programme in the next phase courting arrests throughout the State in support of the farmers’ demand for the loan waiver as promised.
KTR claimed that the Chief Minister himself had said that farmers had outstanding loans of Rs 49,000 crore in December 2023 but he kept revising the figure downwards and finally loans to the tune of only Rs 7,500 crore were waived.
He cited the statement made by Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka at a meeting of bankers on Tuesday that only Rs 7,500 crore loans were waived. KTR lamented that the government cheated lakhs of farmers by not waiving off their loans despite making promises. He alleged that Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy backstabbed 70 lakh farmers with false promises and misleading talk.
Citing media reports, he said farmers have come on roads to protest by locking banks and laying siege to government offices. He alleged that the government was booking false police cases against farmers to suppress their protest.
KTR also alleged that the Chief Minister was trying to divert attention from farmers’ protest by using abusive words against BRS President and former chief minister, K Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR). He made it clear that the BRS will not allow its attention to be diverted and stand by farmers.
Moreover, KTR demanded that the Chief Minister should apologise to farmers for failing to fulfil promises including loan waiver and withdraw cases booked against some of them in Adilabad District.
