Pawar snubs Kokate for insulting farmers

Pawar issued the warning during a party meeting on Tuesday evening at his official residence, stating that if Kokate embarrassed the party a third time, he would have to face consequences

MUMBAI: State agriculture minister Manikrao Kokate’s penchant for insulting farmers has earned him a stern warning from his party chief, Ajit Pawar. “Once, twice… but making the same mistake a third time will not be acceptable,” said Pawar, NCP chief and deputy chief minister.

Pawar snubs Kokate for insulting farmers

Pawar issued the warning during a party meeting on Tuesday evening at his official residence, stating that if Kokate embarrassed the party a third time, he would have to face consequences. Despite Pawar’s frustration, Kokate arrived late for the meeting.

Without naming the minister, Pawar is said to have told party leaders to refrain from making statements that would bring disrepute to the NCP. He referred to two statements made by Kokate, in which he insulted farmers even though he holds the agriculture portfolio. In February, Kokate compared farmers with beggars and said, “Nowadays, even beggars do not accept a single rupee, and yet the government offers crop insurance to farmers for just one rupee.”

Then, while inspecting a farm field last week, Kokate accused agriculturists of deliberately defaulting on crop loans in the hope of benefitting from a farm loan waiver, and then lavishing the money thus saved on functions such as weddings and engagements. “You people take crop loans and then default on them for 5 to 10 years, so that the loans would be waived. Farmers do not invest money in their farms. The state government gives you financial assistance for everything, from drip irrigation to ponds, pipelines etc. It is the government that does the capital investment by releasing money for different things, not the farmers,” said the minister in a video that went viral last Saturday.

Kokate’s statements outraged farmers and drew criticism from opposition parties, forcing him to apologise.

A five-time MLA from Sinnar assembly constituency in Nashik, Kokate was inducted as agriculture minister in the new Mahayuti alliance government. In February, he was sentenced by a local court to two years’ imprisonment along with his brother on charges of cheating and forgery in a case that dates back three decades. The court found them guilty of fraudulently acquiring two flats under the chief minister’s discretionary quota, meant for economically weaker sections.

At Tuesday’s meeting, Pawar advised NCP leaders to weigh their words, warning them against creating problems for the party. “Leaders are expected to follow the party’s line and ensure its best interests,” he insisted.

Pawar also took his ministers to task for skipping Janata Darbar meetings. In some instances, ministers have been sending their private secretaries to hold these public gatherings, a public forum where the people present grievances that need to be addressed.