Former PM Deve Gowda demands special package for farmers
Bengaluru: Former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda on Monday demanded that the Karnataka government announce a special package for farmers who are on the verge of quitting agriculture as their profession following losses due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Please announce special package for the farmers to bail them out of the loss due to the lockdown.
Drop many of the schemes in the budget but don't leave the farmers in distress," Gowda said in his letter to Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa.
The JD(S) supremo said the way relief has been announced for the milk producers by procuring the unsold milk and distributing it to the slum dwellers, the same assistance should be provided to the farmers of the state.
"If you don't come forward to assist the farmers, then they will be forced to sell their land," Gowda cautioned the Chief Minister.
The former prime minister said the farmers are on the verge of falling in the debt trap and may be compelled to take the extreme step of suicide due to the losses.
Gowda said the farmers are unable to sell their crop because they are not getting proper price for their produce and are selling their crop at a throwaway price to minimise their losses.
"In just one month farmers reached the brink of bankruptcy as they are unable to sell the standing crops in lakhs of acres of land," Gowda said.
The JD(S) supremo has been championing the cause of farmers in the state and highlighting their sufferings.
On April 3 Gowda has appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to look into the plight of farmers, labourers and the middle class people due to the lockdown.
"In such times of crisis, we should see to it that there is no disruption in farming activities by ensuring proper marketing channels to agricultural produce, especially perishables.
Only then we can sustain our long battle against this pandemic," Gowda said in a tweet.
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No need for guv: DMK leader Kanimozhi
Chennai (PTI): Senior DMK leader Kanimozhi Karunanidhi on Friday reiterated her party’s opposition to the office of the governor amid uncertainty over government formation in Tamil Nadu after a fractured election mandate.
Speaking to PTI Videos, Kanimozhi emphasised that the DMK’s demand for the abolition of the governor’s post remained unchanged, especially as questions arise over constitutional propriety during the current political transition.
"Our position that we do not need a governor at all is something the DMK has never changed at any point in time," she said.
When asked about the governor’s actions following the election results—particularly the delay in inviting the leading party to form the government—Kanimozhi pointed to what she described as the "inherent friction" between the office of the governor and the political interests of the state.
She said the current situation "raises a lot of questions" and requires introspection regarding constitutional procedures.
Kanimozhi described the election results as lacking a "clear mandate", which she identified as the primary reason for the prevailing political uncertainty in the state.
"What the people decide is supreme," she said, adding that while the mandate was not decisive, it must be respected.
The Thoothukudi MP attributed the ongoing delays and "many confusions" to the absence of a decisive majority for any single party.
She firmly dismissed rumours about the DMK potentially supporting the AIADMK from outside to help stabilise the government.
She described such reports as mere "speculation" and "rumours".
"We can’t be responding to every rumour," she said, declining to comment on the AIADMK’s claims regarding its numbers to form the government.
The political situation in Tamil Nadu remains fluid as stakeholders await the governor’s next constitutional step in an Assembly where no party has secured a clear majority.
The DMK and AIADMK—both of which suffered significant losses to the TVK—are reportedly exploring tactical manoeuvres to navigate the hung Assembly.
The TVK, with 108 seats and the support of Congress’s five MLAs, is still short of the majority mark. The DMK and AIADMK secured 59 and 47 seats, respectively.
