Jalandhar: BKU activists lift dharna after complainant’s licence restored

Jalandhar, October 27

Farmers owing allegiance to the Bhartiya Kisan Union (Rajewal) have ended their dharna against the Agriculture Department Jalandhar after the decision to cancel the licence of a seed store of one of their farmer leaders was withheld.

While farmers had on Wednesday evening gheraod Chief Agricultural Officer, Jalandhar, Jaswant Rai, demanding the withdrawal of the decision to cancel the licence of the Dhashmesh Seed Store in Phillaur, the dharna was called off late on Wednesday night after they received assurance from the department for the same.

Decision withheld

We have currently withheld the withdrawal of the licence of Dashmesh Seed Store. As far as the FIR is concerned, it will be lodged by the SSP rural. We have already forwarded the report to the police. — Jaswant Rai, Chief Agricultural Officer

Farmers said they had postponed the dharna until an FIR was lodged against the Krishna Seed Store, which allegedly sold the spurious seed to them. The department said it had currently withdrawn the cancellation of Dashmesh Seed Store’s licence. BKU (Rajewal) spokesperson Jathedar Kashmir Singh claimed: “The dharna was withdrawn late last night after the cancellation of the licence of Dhashmesh Seed Store was withdrawn by the department. The dharna has only been postponed. We demand an FIR against the Krishna Seed Store which sold us the spurious seed. If an FIR is not lodged soon, we will resume the dharna again.”

Chief Agricultural Officer, Jalandhar, Jaswant Rai said, “We have currently withheld the withdrawal of the license of Dashmesh Seed Store. As far as an FIR is concerned, it will be lodged by the SSP rural. We have already intimated the police.”

The matter pertains to the sale of 70 bags of paddy seeds labelled PR-126 seeds; sold by the Krishna Pesticide Store at Adda Muai (Phillaur), 6-7 months ago. With each of the bags containing 30 kg seeds, the seeds were used across 415 to 435 acres of farmland across the Phillaur block. While PR-126 is a short duration paddy variety, farmers alleged the sale of spurious seed caused them to incur heavy losses as the seed meant to ripen 15 to 20 days abefore the other varieties failed to do so, upsetting their yearlong farming schedule.

In its subsequent action on the complaint, the agrcultural department cancelled licenses of both the Krishna Pesticide Store as well as the Dashmesh Seed Store (in the Akalpur Block of Phillaur) owned by farm leader Baljit SIngh Mahal. Farmers had been demanding restoration of the license of the Dashmesh Seed Store, terming the store owner (a farm leader of the outfit) a victim and not the perpetrator of the case.