Ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the Shiromani Akali Dal’s (SAD) election manifesto committee on Thursday held meeting with the farmers’ organisations and representatives to take their feedback in preparation of the party manifesto.
The meeting, which was second of the manifesto committee, was attended by Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU) president Balbir Singh Rajewal and former Mandi Board chairman Ajmer Singh Lakhowal, and their feedback regarding issues pertaining to the farming community was taken.
“Both farmer leaders gave a detailed account of how the Congress Government has reneged on its promise to waive off farmer loans of Rs 90,000 crore taken from nationalised and cooperative banks as well as private money lenders which has resulted in a huge number of farmers’ suicides in the last 20 months of Congress rule,” said SAD’s manifesto committee member secretary Daljit Singh Cheema.
He said that the kisan leaders also told the committee that the Congress had also betrayed the families of the suicide victims who had not been provided the promised Rs 10 lakh relief.