A day after the Congress-led government in Punjab launched its farm debt waiver scheme, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Monday termed it a “fraud played on the farmers of Punjab.”
Interacting with the media here, the former Punjab Deputy Chief Minister and SAD president, Sukhbir Singh Badal, said the Congress government had announced a partial crop loan waiver scheme against its election promise of a “complete waiver” and hence betrayed the entire farming community.
“Punjab’s Chief Minister Capt. Amarinder Singh had promised a complete waiver of loans up to ₹90,000 – including those from nationalised and cooperative banks and private money lenders. But, now he has delivered a ₹167 crore relief which gives only an average relief of ₹35,000 each to 47,000 farmers,” Mr. Badal said.
Mr. Badal said the party’s core committee would take a decision on the next course of action on January 12. “We will also meet the Punjab Governor the same day and demand dismissal of the State government for betraying the farmers,” he said.
Mr. Badal also demanded a probe by a sitting judge of the Supreme Court into all alleged false police cases registered during the tenure of the SAD-BJP as well as during the last 10 months of the Congress government.
