National Human Rights Commission issues notices to TN government and police chief, says beating up the farmer constituted a human rights violation.

Now with the National Human Rights Commission taking suo motu notice of the private bank agents and policemen beating a Tanjavur farmer brutally and seizing his tractor, the issue has taken a serious turn. The national body expressed shock over the incident where a farmer was beaten black and blue even though he had repaid major portion of his loan and had fallen back on two instalments.

The treatment meted out to the farmer is in stark contrast to the good times the King of Good Times, Vijay Mallaya enjoyed despite owing public sector banks over Rs 7,000 crores. He was treated deferentially and was even allowed to get out of the country even as the Supreme Court was hearing a plea that he be prevented to go abroad as he may abscond.

But the farmer from Tanjavur, 40 year old Balan, was not so lucky as the high profile liquor baron from Karnatka who was flying high even after grounding a glitzy airliner, Kingfisher Airlines. Mallaya had not even paid his staffers for several years.

Even though the police helped the finance recovery agents rough up Balan, the farmer, the human rights commission said the forcible recovery itself amounted to violation of human rights. Further, the torture and brutal attack on the farmer would be serious violation of human rights. Though, it approves the realization of debt through lawful means but totally disapproves the forcible recovery by torturing farmers, the commission said in a press statement on Thursday.

Justice, D. Murugesan, Member, NHRC has also observed that it is in the common knowledge that private sector banks and financial institutions, in order to recover the loan advanced to individuals, particularly farmers, use police to brutalize the defaulters. The intemperate and immoderate attitude of the bank officials and the involvement of the police for such forcible recovery by torturing the farmers and their servants are largely prevalent in different states of the country.

The commission took notice of the vedio clipping of the ghastly incident, wherein some 20 people including policemen in uniform visited the village of the farmer, Balan, and beat him black and blue in full view of the villagers. They also forcibly took away the tractor, despite the fact that the farmer had repaid major portion of his loan. The incident took place on Friday last and a recording of the attack on farmer was aired on a local television channel.

The human rights commission took cognizance of this report as also few newspaper reports and issued notices to the Tamil Nadu chief secretary and Tamil Nadu DGP to respond within the next two weeks.

Balan had taken a loan of Rs. 3,80,000/- from a private bank during the year 2011, for purchase of a tractor. He has paid so far a sum of Rs. 4,38,880/-. The bank demanded a further payment of Rs. 1,34,000/- and notice was also issued in this regard. However, Balan did not pay back the said amount.

On Friday, when Balan was tilling his field, some 20 men surrounded him pulled him down from the tractor and thrashed him soundly. And they later took away the tractor as well. Policemen were among those who brutally beat him up.