‘Farmers protesting for media attention,’ case against agriculture minister for ‘anti-farmer’ jibe

Commenting on the ongoing nationwide agitation by thousands of farmers demanding loan waiver and higher price for their produce among other things, the minister had said some farmers are doing it for media attention.

A case was lodged against Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh in Bihar’s Muzaffarpur district on Monday for “insulting farmers”, a lawyer said.

Union Minister Radha Mohan Singh speaking to press in Patna Bihar India on Saturday June 02,2018.(HT File Photo)

Social activist Tamanna Hashmi filed the case in the Chief Judicial Magistrate’s court. It will be heard next week.

Commenting on the ongoing nationwide agitation by thousands of farmers demanding loan waiver and higher price for their produce among other things, the minister had said some farmers are doing it for media attention.

“There are crores of farmers in the country but only a few farmers have been staging protest. It has no relevance at all,” he had said.

The 10-day protests that started on June 1 coincide with the farmers’ agitation in Mandsaur of Madhya Pradesh last year when seven farmers had died in a police firing on June 6.

Farmers in the agrarian states of Punjab, Haryana, Maharashtra and Rajasthan on Friday joined the protest call given by various farmer organisations.

Radha Mohan Singh’s comments that farmers were committing suicide just for media coverage have been widely criticised.