HEAVY FINES IMPOSED ON FARMERS, BHAI DINESH CALLS IT UNJUST

HEAVY FINES IMPOSED ON FARMERS, BHAI DINESH CALLS IT UNJUST

27-NOV-ENG 24

RAJIV NAYAN AGRAWAL

ARA----------------------------Senior Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader and former MLA from Jagdishpur, Bhojpur, Bhai Dinesh, in keeping with his commitment to public service, formally launched the "Public Problem Solution Program" at his Jagdishpur residence on Sunday. On this occasion, Bhai Dinesh informed that this program is not a new initiative; he has previously successfully conducted it at the Kisan Bhawan located in the block premises.

He explained that to ensure direct access to the people of the Jagdishpur assembly constituency, he has specifically reserved two days a week – Sunday and Monday. On Sunday, he will meet with the public in person at his Jagdishpur residence, while on Monday, he will be available at the Kisan Bhawan located in the block premises.

Bhai Dinesh listened to the problems of more than 25 farmers, students, youth, and business representatives with utmost seriousness today. He immediately initiated efforts to resolve these issues and spoke with the concerned officials on the phone to resolve the issues on the spot. During this, he exposed a serious case of injustice meted out to eight farmers from Kodhwa village.

The former MLA explained that these farmers had been fined a hefty sum of ₹67,000 each by the SDO of the Jagdishpur Electricity Department, allegedly at the behest of an outsider. This is particularly concerning because two of these farmers own neither land nor irrigation motors. Dinesh stated that the FIR clearly demonstrates that it was prepared under someone's influence and by sitting in a single location. Expressing his strong objection to this unjust action, Dinesh argued that even if it were assumed for a moment that the farmers had used the motor to plant their paddy, it was still not an unpardonable offense.

He elaborated, explaining that the farmers had repeatedly visited the electricity department office to become legal consumers, but were denied the status, citing that the necessary wires, poles, and transformers had not yet arrived at their private borewells. In such a situation, when farmers were not being granted legal consumer status and government canal water was not reaching their agricultural lands, they had no choice but to plant their paddy. He questioned whether farmers would have stopped farming under such circumstances. He clarified that the farmers had not used electricity to run any industry or other commercial establishment, but only for their livelihood and to produce food for the country.

Brother Dinesh termed the imposition of a fine of approximately five lakh rupees and the filing of an FIR against the farmers by the SDO of the Jagdishpur Electricity Department as a "major crime." He strongly demanded that this unjust FIR be immediately withdrawn. He announced that he would personally meet the Managing Director (MD) of the South Bihar Electricity Board, Patna, regarding this serious issue and submit a detailed memorandum regarding the injustice done to the farmers. He also warned that if this serious problem was not satisfactorily resolved and the farmers did not receive justice, he would stage a sit-in in the SDO's office and launch a decisive struggle in the interests of the farmers.

He also emphasized that India is an agricultural country, and Bihar is a predominantly agricultural state, where dozens of public welfare schemes are being implemented for the upliftment and welfare of farmers. In such a scenario, imposing unjust fines of lakhs of rupees on farmers is highly condemnable, unacceptable, and contrary to the government's farmer-friendly policies. Furthermore, Dinesh urged the Executive Engineer, Electricity Board, Jagdishpur-Bihiya, to replace the existing 16 kVA transformer at Kushaha Tola with a higher-capacity 63 kVA transformer to improve power supply in the area. He also stated that he is continuously making efforts to ensure that farmers receive crop compensation as soon as possible.