Karnataka: Sugar Minister's statement on farmer suicides stirs controversy

Karnataka Cabinet Minister Shivanand Patil denies saying farmers commit suicide for compensation, amid controversy.

Cabinet Minister in Government of Karnataka, Shivanand Patil's statement that farmers' suicide cases are being reported more and more due to the desire for compensation stirred controversy after which Patil, on Wednesday, held a press conference in Haveri and said he never said that farmers are committing suicide because they will get more compensation.

Patil had said that farmer suicide cases were less before 2015 but after the government started giving compensation of Rs.5 lakh, the number of cases is increasing.

"I never said that farmers are committing suicide because they will get more compensation. No one should misunderstand this. Farmers get worried due to wrong information related to farmer suicide cases." Shivanand Patil said.

The press conference was held after the farmer leaders, who were very angry with the minister's statement, surrounded Patil while he was coming out of a Teacher's Day function organized at Guru Bhavan in Haveri.

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Farmers' leaders insisted that he (Shivanand Patil) should withdraw his statement immediately and apologize to the farmers.

BJP IT Cell Head, Amit Malviya in a post on X also took a dig at Congress and criticized Patil for his shocking display of insensitivity.

Malviya wrote, "In a shocking display of insensitivity, Karnataka sugarcane development and APMC minister Shivanand Patil claimed that farmer suicides in the state are increasing by leaps and bounds "after the state government hiked compensation" for the family of the deceased. Really, Congress?"

Earlier, Patil had said that farmer suicide cases were less before 2015 but after the government started giving compensation of Rs.5 lakh, the number of cases is increasing.

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"Before the Veeresh Committee came, there were fewer cases of farmer suicides. Earlier 2 lakh compensation was given. After the increase in compensation, heart attack, love failure, and drunken suicide are all being recorded as farmer suicide cases. Not all cases where FIRs are registered as suicides are farmer suicides," said Patil in a press conference on Tuesday.

He further added that in the state, 500 farmer suicide cases have been recorded in 2020, 595 in 2021, 651 in 2022 and 412 in 2023. The government is ready to provide compensation to genuine farmer suicide cases which have to be decided by the committee and it will be confirmed only after the FSL report is received.