Lost crop due to PM Modi's rally: MP farmer

A Madhya Pradesh farmer has claimed that he lost his crop because of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's proposed rally in the state on February 18.

Farmer Suresh Parmar and his family own 15 acres of land near the proposed site of the prime minister's rally at Sehore district.

He alleged that last Thursday, top district officials came to his land and forced him to cut down his wheat crop before harvest to clear the land for Modi's rally.

"A few people came and said we need to harvest the crop as soon as possible or it will be destroyed. We didn't have any choice," Parmar told NDTV.

Parmar said that he may have lost more than a third of his crops as they were not ready for harvest.

"Does the PM want me to commit suicide?" asked Parmar's 24-year-old nephew, Kapil.

"A premature harvest means the crop will fetch very little money in the market and I will be further burdened with loans, " Kapil told Hindustan Times. 

However, the Bharatiya Janata Party-led state government has denied Parmar's allegation that it forced him to cut his crop.

Agriculture Minister Gauri Shankar Bisen told NDTV that the land where the stage is being constructed has been taken by consent. 

“We have not built the stage on any farmer's land and no instruction has gone to farmers to harvest the crop," said Bisen.

Even Sehore district collector Sudam Khade has denied the accusations, saying no one was asked to cut down standing crops.

Khade told Hindustan Times that over 300 acres to be used for the programme is largely government land while some tracts belong to private entities.

Modi is set to address a massive farmers' convention in Sehore, nearly 40 km from state capital Bhopal. The PM is likely to speak on the new Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana or crop insurance scheme that aims to insure farmers against crop damage.

"We want the prime minister to give us insurance against our crop loss. He is coming for us so I hope we will get some compensation for our losses," said Kapil.