Moratorium: Tom Jose refutes reports

Reports that Cabinet rejected his stance that there was no administrative lapse

Chief Secretary Tom Jose has refuted news reports in certain sections of the media that the State Cabinet on Friday rejected his stance that there was no administrative lapse in enforcing a government decision in March to prohibit banks from recovering loans from farmers.

Mr. Jose told The Hindu that the news was incorrect. “I have no idea where they got the information,” he added.

The press release issued by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s office after the Cabinet meeting also made no mention of the matter.

The new controversy has its roots in a decision taken by the Cabinet on March 5 to address the humanitarian crisis and farmer suicides caused by the flood in 2018.

The government had announced a moratorium on the recovery of debt from farmers till December 31. The freeze applied to all category of loans taken by farmers.

On March 10, the Election Commission declared the parliamentary elections and the model code of conduct came into effect.

Several banks had initiated their recovery process well before the Cabinet decision on March 5. They had already received court sanction to attach and auction assets and despatched recovery notices to thousands of farmers.

Notice to 15,000

More than 15,000 farmers across the State received debt recovery notification from banks, prompting at least six to commit suicide.

Farmers in Idukki and Wayanad bore the brunt of the revenue recovery process. The district had lost 12,000 hectares of arable land and crops to landslips. The storm waters had washed away the fertile topsoil in large tracts of farmland in Wayanad.

The Opposition had slammed the government for failing to put a brake on the move by banks to recover loans from farmers by invoking the harsh provisions of the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Securities Interest Act.

Poll issue

The plight of farmers became a touchy election issue, prompting some ruling front politicians to blame the bureaucracy.

A government official said it was pertinent to note that Mr. Vijayan had cast no such blame on the officialdom nor made any adverse comment against the bureaucracy so far.