A farmer, who could not repay the crop loan he had availed from a nationalised bank and reportedly faced the wrath of a bank official, committed suicide here on Thursday.
Since S. Vembu Krishnan (75) of Keezha Pillaiyarkulam near Manur has left behind a suicide note that held the bank official responsible for his suicide, police have registered case against the official.
In the suicide note he had purportedly addressed to the Regional Manager of the bank, Vembu Krishnan had said he had obtained loan from the bank’s Manur branch in 2007-2008 for installing drip irrigation system in his farm.
Later, he had taken another loan from the bank for cultivating mango, chilli, paddy and plantain.
While he could repay the loan he had taken for cultivating mango and chilli, Vembu Krishnan could not repay the loan of ₹90,000 he had obtained for cultivating paddy and plantain due to his poor health and monsoon failure.
Against this backdrop, he pledged his wife’s gold chain in the bank for ₹50,000 on Tuesday last, as he wanted to release a portion of the jewellery he had pledged.
However, the manager of the bank, Perumal, reportedly asked him to pay the loan of ₹90,000 with interest and credited ₹50,000 against the outstanding loan.
The official allegedly refused to release the jewellery as he wanted the borrower to repay the entire loan amount. Though Vembu Krishnan tried to persuade the banker for more than 15 minutes, the manager did not release the chain.
Consumes poison
Upset over this, Vembu Krishnan, came to his son Balasubramanian’s house in Tirunelveli Town, and consumed poison on Wednesday, and died at Tirunelveli Medical College Hospital on Thursday.
Based on the complaint filed by Mr. Balasubramanian, Tirunelveli Town police registered a case against Perumal for forcing Vembu Krishnan to take the extreme step.
Condemning the alleged harassment of Vembu Krishnan, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has decided to organise a demonstration at Manur on March 13.
In a statement, party’s district secretary K.G. Bhaskaran said the deceased, who was repaying the principal and the interest for the crop loan, could not do so for the past four months due to ill-health and monsoon failure.
“Even as huge loans amounting to thousands of crores of rupees, all availed by corporate firms, are being waived off by banks, the nationalised bank official’s merciless steps to collect a loan of ₹90,000 has taken the life of a poor farmer,” Mr. Bhaskaran said.
