File photo of HD Kumaraswamy

BENGALURU: Having promised to waive farm loans, the HD Kumaraswamy government is in a fix as several banks are securing arrest warrants against defaulting farmers following a delay in disbursal of funds to loan accounts. As angry farmers threaten to gherao Vidhana Soudha , the CM said those eligible for the waiver need not worry while the finance department sought to clarify that the waiver was only for crop loans and not other kinds of farm loans.

A seething Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha and Hasiru Sene said they would lay siege to Soudha on Nov 19. Other farmer organisations, including Karnataka Sugarcane Growers’ Association, are likely to join the protest. “It is six months since the government announced the waiver, but there is no sign of it being implemented. The delay has taken a toll on the farmers who are getting notices and arrest warrants,” said Chamarasa Patil, KRRS honorary president .

CASE AGAINST DEFAULTERS

Farmers blame govt for loan trouble

While some nationalised banks have filed recovery suits, a few private ones have gone to the extent of filing criminal cases against the defaulters on charges of dishonouring postdated cheques. In Belagavi district alone, 160 suits have been filed and arrest warrants issued against 62 farmers.

Appalal Rajasab, a farmer from Naganuru village in Gokak taluk who had given surety to his neighbour, has been summoned by the district court on Monday. The private bank — which had given Rajasab’s neighbour a loan of Rs 5 lakh to buy a vehicle last year — has seized his tractor. “Such incidents are reported from across the state. The blames lies with the dithering government,” said Kuruburu Shanthakumar, president of KSGA.

Officials in the State Level Bankers Committee said banks were following due procedure to recover loans. As per the norm, banks take collateral security for loans above Rs 2 lakh. While the crop loan is a short-term one to be repaid in a year, most loans in question are availed by farmers to buy tractors, pump sets and other agricultural equipment. This includes personal loans as well.

Nationalised banks, which don’t take postdated cheques from farmers, have filed routine recovery suits in the court as part of the procedure. But a few private banks have taken cheques and booked criminal cases against the defaulters.

Alarmed by the development, Kumaraswamy on Sunday directed deputy commissioners and superintendents of police in districts to help farmers. “I’ve sought details of the loan accounts from districts where farmers have received arrest warrants. The farmers eligible for crop loan waiver need not be worried as the government will repay their loans,” said the chief minister.

A senior finance official said the government is committed to writing off only crop loans up to Rs 2 lakh pending in scheduled and commercial banks and up to Rs 1 lakh in cooperative banks. “Farmers should be clear that the waiver scheme is only meant for crop loans. The government is not responsible other loans,” he added.

The farmer leaders, however, sought to blame the government for the present fiasco as they argued that the chief minister had promised to waive all kinds of loans, including crop loans, availed by farmers. “In the first meeting he had convened in May, the chief minister had promised that loans would be waived in two phases. He had said in the first phase, crop loans would be waived and in the second phase other loans would be waived,” said Chamarasa Patil. “This made the farmers wait before paying their monthly instalments and now they are in distress.”

If the government wants to write off all kinds of loans, it has to cough up not less than Rs 1.14 lakh crore, a tall order, as it was assessed during the meeting.

