HC seeks details on farmer suicides from petitioners

Hyderabad: The two-judge PIL bench of the High Court at Hyderabad on Thursday asked Vyavasaya Jana Chaitanya Samithi, Pakala Srihari Rao, Prof Kodandaram and others to place before it details of farmers who have committed suicide after failing to repay crop loans due to the crop loss to the governments of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.

The bench of acting Chief Justice Dilip B Bhosale and Justice P Naveen Rao is dealing with a batch of petitions complaining of State inaction in curbing the farmers’ suicides in the two States. The bench did not approve of a huge gathering of the affected members on the court premises.

The bench said “it is an irresponsible act, bringing them in the summer from faraway places may not be appreciable. It appears that it is an act to attract some one.” When one of the counsel for the petitioner complained that both the governments have failed to take steps to set up State level farmers’ commission, the bench said it is easy for anyone to approach the court and blame the governments.

“We are making our best efforts to support the distressed farmers and similarly the governments are also doing their level best to resolve the issue,” the Chief Justice observed. Sharath Kumar, counsel for the government of Telangana said that the petitioners have submitted list of the farmers who have committed suicide after crop failure and the district collectors are examining the cases and in some of the cases the family members admitted that suicides were not due to the crop failure.