Betrayal: Priyanka slams Centre on no loan waiver for Wayanad landslides
New Delhi (PTI): With the Centre telling the Kerala High Court that the loans of people affected by the landslides in Wayanad last year would not be waived, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Thursday said this is a "betrayal" and her party strongly condemns this "apathy".
The Union government has told the Kerala High Court that the loans of people affected by the landslides in Wayanad in July last year would not be waived. Instead, they will be rescheduled or restructured in accordance with the RBI's Master Directions on Natural Calamities.
The Centre made this submission in an affidavit filed in response to the high court's query on whether the loans availed by the affected individuals could be waived.
Congress general secretary and Wayanad MP Vadra said, "We strongly condemn this apathy and stand shoulder to shoulder with our brothers and sisters in Wayanad."
"Wayanad landslide victims have lost everything - homes, land, livelihoods. Yet, the government refuses to offer even a loan waiver. Instead, they get mere loan rescheduling and restructuring," she said.
"This is not relief. This is a betrayal. We strongly condemn this apathy and stand shoulder to shoulder with our brothers and sisters in Wayanad.Their pain will not be ignored - we will raise their voices at every platform until justice is served," Gandhi said in a post on X.
In the affidavit, the Union Finance Ministry stated that a special meeting of the State Level Bankers' Committee (SLBC) Kerala was held on August 19 last year.
The meeting, which was also attended by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, decided to extend the applicable relief measures in line with the RBI's Master Directions on Natural Calamities.
According to the RBI's master directions, in the event of a natural calamity, the financial relief measures to be adopted include the restructuring or rescheduling of existing loans which would entail a one-year moratorium and the provision of fresh loans.
The Centre had earlier informed a bench of Justices A K Jayasankaran Nambiar and Easwaran S that the proposed measures were limited to a moratorium and restructuring of loans availed by the landslide victims.
This submission was made during the hearing of a PIL initiated by the court on its own in the wake of the Wayanad landslides, aimed at improving disaster prevention and management in Kerala.
A major landslide struck the Mundakkai and Chooralmala regions on July 30 last year, almost decimating both areas.
The disaster left hundreds injured, claimed over 200 lives, and 32 persons remain missing.
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'Blood in river' rant: Owaisi reminds Bilawal of Benazir Bhutto's killing by homegrown terrorists
Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Apr 28 (PTI): AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi on Monday criticised Pakistani politician Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari for his "blood would flow in rivers" remark, reminding him of the killing of his mother, Benazir Bhutto, by home-grown terrorists.
He also referred to former Pakistani cricketer Shahid Afridi as a "joker" for his statement on the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, which claimed the lives of 26 tourists.
The Hyderabad MP said Pakistan should be placed on the 'grey list' of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and advocated for cyber attacks against the neighbouring nation.
When asked about Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari's statement against India following its withdrawal from the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT), Owaisi remarked that Bhutto-Zardari should question who was responsible for his mother's death, emphasising that "she was killed by such homegrown terrorists."
Former Pakistan PM Benazir Bhutto was assassinated on December 27, 2007, in Rawalpindi, Pakistan.
After India suspended the IWT, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari declared, "The Indus is ours and will remain ours—either our water will flow through it, or their blood."
Speaking to reporters, Owaisi said his party- the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen- supports the Centre's decision to suspend the IWT.
However, he raised concerns about where the water from the Indus River would be stored after the treaty's suspension, stating, "It has to be stored somewhere."
Under the World Bank-brokered treaty, India was granted exclusive rights to the water of the eastern rivers -- the Sutlej, Beas, and Ravi -- amounting to an average annual flow of about 33 million acre-feet (MAF). The water of the western rivers -- the Indus, Jhelum and Chenab -- with an average annual flow of around 135 MAF, was largely allocated to Pakistan.
With the treaty now put in abeyance, the government is looking at ways to utilise the water of the Indus, Jhelum and Chenab.
Owaisi asserted that Pakistan should be placed on the FATF grey list to highlight its financing of terrorism through illegal means.
He also urged the government to launch cyber attacks against Pakistan, citing Article 51 of the UN Charter, which provides the right to act in self-defence.
Additionally, he demanded that the Narendra Modi government rethink its deterrent policy since incidents like the Pahalgam attack were taking place even after airstrikes.
Reiterating his support for the Centre's decisions, Owaisi remarked, "Pakistan should understand that India's defence budget is bigger than their entire budget. They are 20 years behind India. The politicians there just keep blabbering. That country is facing internal issues. They can't manufacture medicines for malaria but keep talking about fighting India."
Speaking on the Waqf Amendment Act, Owaisi opposed its provisions, arguing that they violated the Constitution.
Regarding the inclusion of non-Muslims on Waqf boards, he questioned, "Wouldn't it be painful if we asked for non-Hindus to be included in the Pandharpur temple trust?"
#WATCH | Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Maharashtra | On Bilawal Bhutto Zardari's "Blood will flow" remark after Pahalgam attack, AIMIM MP Asaduddin Owaisi says,"...Bachpane ki baatein nahi karna..His mother was killed by their homegrown terrorists...Does he even know what he is… pic.twitter.com/yVn7jegwKn
— ANI (@ANI) April 28, 2025
