Nagpur: The local unit of Aam Admi Party (AAP) launched a scathing attack on a Marathi daily for mocking at the distressed farmers and terming their problems and suicides as bogus. “The Marathi daily ‘Loksatta’ in its Editorial on Page 7 and published on December 16 with headline “Balirajachi Bogus Bomb” (Farmers’ bogus outcry) spit fire on the helping State Government and those sympathizing with farmers as well. The Editorial ‘derived sadistic pleasure’ by terming the farmers crooked, incompetent, worthless,” said AAP Convenor Devendra Wankhede while lambasting the Marathi daily.
“A few years ago, a Chief Minister had described the farmers as drunkards, drug addicted, spending lot in marriages and so on. Such farmers commit suicides, the Chief Minister had said,” recalled the AAP leaders and added that every farmer is not addicted or bad.
Wankhede further said, “Many times the harvest of mango, orange, banana, sugarcane, cotton, tur etc is exceedingly good. But when the farmers go to markets for selling the produce they don’t receive the appropriate price and return home empty handed.
Who is responsible for this situation? The farmers, who strive round the year, get only Rs 15 for a dozen of bananas but the same bananas are sold at Rs 40 a dozen by the traders. Many times the farmers have to throw away their produce for not getting the appropriate price. How many industrialists have to throw away their products? The answer to this question should be given by the Editor of the Marathi daily before spitting fire on the poor farmers.”
Coming in support of farmers, the AAP leader Wankhede said that many times the Government bans export of sugar, onions, wheat, cotton and other products for controlling the prices. When export is banned, prices tumble in markets. Therefore the farmers are deprived of proper price for their produce and thus put to heavy losses. Who is responsible for this phenomenon? asked Wankhede and castigated the Marathi daily for terming the farmers’ outcry as bogus.
