Usury deaths: Union Minister wants Collector sacked

He also demands action against police officials

October 29, 2017 09:34 pm | Updated December 03, 2021 10:36 am IST - SIVAKASI

 Pon. Radhakrishnan, Union Minister of State for Road Transport, Highways and Shipping.

Pon. Radhakrishnan, Union Minister of State for Road Transport, Highways and Shipping.

The Collector of Tirunelveli district should have been dismissed and action initiated against the police officials in connection with the deaths of a family of four reportedly due to usury, Minister of State for Finance and Shipping Pon. Radhakrishnan has said.

Talking to reporters here on Sunday, Mr. Radhakrishnan said the officials had neglected the family’s repeated petitions on alleged harassment by the usurer. Had the officials acted on the complaint immediately, the lives of four persons would not have been lost, he said.

“This incident has brought shame to the State. It’s a failure on part of the State government in acting as per the provisions of the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Charging Exorbitant Interest Act. The government should find who are all involved in usury. Whose money is used for usurious moneylending should also be brought out,” he said.

On withdrawal of subsidy for sugar distributed through ration shops, Mr. Radhakrishnan said subsidy was meant only for those who could not afford to buy commodities at market prices and not for the affluent.

“The Centre will continue with the subsidy for the people below poverty line and the downtrodden. If there is any problem faced by such people, the government will look into it,” he said.

Top News Today

Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.