Women members of a farmer’s family sitting outside their locked house in Naganur of Belagavi district after it was sealed by a finance company over loan default.
| Photo Credit: FILE PHOTO
Farmers leaders broke open the lock of a farmer’s house in Naganur of Belagavi district that had been sealed by a private small finance bank for defaulting on loan repayment.
Leaders visited the house of Saidappa Gadadi on Wednesday, broke open the lock and resettled the farmer’s family in the house.
They warned that officers and staff of Equitas Small Finance Bank will not be allowed to lock and seal any farmer’s house in the district in future.
The bank had thrown out the farmer’s family, including his daughter and her infant child, and forced them to spend the night out in the cold, on Monday.
The bank’s officers obtained a court order to seal his house, after he failed to pay some instalments for his ₹5 lakh loan.
Gadadi had taken the loan in 2020 and repaid ₹3.16 lakh. He failed to pay instalments as his cows and buffaloes died.
However, he resumed payment of ₹16,000 per month. But the bank said that it did not receive any payment.
Gadadi suspected that the banking correspondent who collected the money had misused the money and did not deposit it with the bank. Now, the bank is asking me to pay ₹4.35 lakh, including arrears and fine. They have turned down my request for one-time settlement, he said.
Meanwhile, members of the District Child Protection Committee and officers of the Women and Child Welfare Department visited the farmer’s house and assured help.
Deputy Director of the department M.R. Nagaraj said that the farmer’s daughter was given shelter in the anganwadi, as soon as the news of the incident reached them. She has now come back to her father’s house, he said.
Published – January 09, 2025 09:28 pm IST
