Call for due coverage to farmers' suicides

Bangalore, Nov 16 (UNI) Leader of the Opposition in the Karnataka Legislative Council H K Patil today urged the Human Rights Commissions of all states and the media to give due attention to ''fragrant violations of human rights of farmers''.

Inaugurating a national seminar on ''Human Rights and Media'' organised by UNI Employees Union, Bangalore, as part of its 20th anniversary celebrations in association with the Hyderabad Karnataka Education Society here, he asked, ''can a society be still called a civilised society which is dead silent on horrors unleashed upon poor farmers''? He asked the HR Commissions to redefine their agenda of human rights and provide proper attention to the ''fragrant violation'' of human rights of farmers.

He claimed that between 1997 and 2003 more than 112,000 farmers had committed suicide in the country. Farmers suicides had evoked ''cold response'' from all the players of the democratic set up including the media.

''Is it not our duty to commit to a wider coverage to instances of farmers' suicides,'' he asked.

Referring to the fundamental rights enshrined in the Constitution, he said the social revolution contemplated in it to fulfil the basic needs of the citizens had remained a distant dream to millions of Indians.

Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly Dharam Singh released a souvenir.

State Human Rights Commission Chairman S R Naik, in his presidential address, highlighting the activities of the Commission, stressed the need for greater exposure of human rights violations by the media.

UNI