BATHINDA: Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal has accused the Congress of pushing farmers into the jaws of death by not keeping its pre-poll promise of completely waiving farm loans.Addressing party workers in Bathinda on Saturday, Sukhbir said the Congress’s “lust for power” proved to be devastating for farmers who had pinned hopes on its ‘Karza kurki khatam, fasal di poori rakam’ slogan. He went on to describe the slogan as “hollow”. “Due to increasing financial stress, debt-ridden farmers are committing suicides as they feel the government is not providing any help to them,” Sukhbir said.He described the incident in Ferozepur district on Thursday night in which a debt-ridden farmer killed his wife and two children due to financial stress as “shocking”. Sukhbir said that Paramjit Singh of Armanpura village in Ferozepur was depressed due rising debts and killed his family to get rid of his financial misery. “The Congress government’s betrayal on loan waiver has killed over 550 farmers in the past two years. The CM should come out of his slumber and lend a helping hand to the beleaguered farming community,” he added.Holding the Congress government responsible for increasing cases of farm suicides in the state, Sukhbir said a case should be registered against Congress election manifesto committee chairperson Manpreet Singh Badal and all its members for abetting farmer suicides by preparing a document of “fake promises” just to garner farmer votes. “A few days ago, a farmer in Patiala held the state government responsible in his suicide note. Now, the Ferozepur farmer killed his entire family in absence of any help from the state government for his financial problems. CM Amarinder Singh should be held accountable for these deaths as they occurred due his government’s failure to implement the promise of complete farm loan waiver,” he added.Sukhbir demanded that a compensatin of Rs 10 lakh and a government job should be given to the kin of more than 550 farmers who committed suicide.

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