Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday (July 3, 2025) strongly criticized the Modi government over the rising number of farmer suicides in Maharashtra, accusing it of being apathetic to their worsening financial distress. In a post on X (formerly Twitter) written in Hindi, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha accused the Centre of ignoring demands for a loan waiver and a legal guarantee for minimum support prices (MSP) for crops.

His remarks came a day after Opposition MLAs staged two walkouts from the Maharashtra Assembly over the issue of farmer deaths and delayed payments to soybean growers. Congress MLA Vijay Wadettiwar claimed in the House that between January and March 2025, 767 farmers had died by suicide in the state. He noted that 200 of those cases were deemed ineligible for compensation, and investigations were still pending in 194 cases.

"Just think—767 farmers died by suicide in only three months in Maharashtra. These aren’t just numbers—they represent 767 shattered families," Rahul Gandhi said. "And what is the government doing? Watching silently, with indifference."

He pointed out that the cost of seeds, fertilizers, and diesel continues to rise, pushing farmers deeper into debt. Yet, he said, there is still no legal guarantee for MSP and demands for debt relief are routinely ignored.

"In contrast, the government easily writes off massive loans for the wealthy. Just read today’s news—Anil Ambani’s ₹48,000 crore SBI ‘fraud’," he added.

Gandhi also referred to Prime Minister Modi’s earlier promise to double farmers’ incomes. "Today, the reality is that the very lives of farmers are being cut short. This system is killing them—quietly and constantly—and Modi ji is busy with his own PR spectacle," he said.

In response, BJP IT Cell head Amit Malviya hit back, posting a chart on X that claimed 55,928 farmers had died by suicide during the 15-year rule of the Congress-NCP alliance in Maharashtra.

"Counting the dead for political gains is shameful, but it’s necessary to hold people like Rahul Gandhi accountable," Malviya said. He added that before making accusations, Gandhi should reflect on the failures of the previous Congress-NCP regime and explain the high farmer suicide numbers under their watch.