HANUMAKONDA: AICC leader Rahul Gandhi consoled the families of farmers who died by suicide before he began addressing the public meeting at the University Arts and Science College in Warangal on Friday. The bereaved families told Rahul how the head of their family struggled to make ends meet and finally took the extreme step, unable to cope with the constant injustice and deprivation meted out to them.
As many as 25 families from the districts told him how they were leading their lives and appealed to Rahul to save them. The Wayanad MP expressed anguish that thousands of farmers died by suicide after AICC president Sonia Gandhi fulfilled the dream of the people by deciding to bifurcate Andhra Pradesh and announcing separate Telangana State. “We will ensure ‘suicide-free’ Telangana after we come to power in the next elections,” Rahul promised.
Devireddy Sailaja a resident of Amanda village of Mahabubabad district told him that she lost her husband Venkatreddy two years ago after he took the extreme step following crop loss and the failure of the authorities to sanction crop loans for his 6 acres 27 gunta land. “Lack of financial support from the TRS government pushed him to the extreme step,” she said.
Sailaja added that her husband’s suicide was not even not entered into official records. Kisan Congress chairman S Anvesh Reddy, senior leader Kodanda Reddy and erstwhile Warangal district Kisan Cell president P Venkatreddy told Rahul that the TRS government was deliberately omitting the names of farmers who had supported the Congress earlier.