Farmers have not gained freedom even after six decades, says Varun Gandhi

New Delhi: BJP MP Varun Gandhi on Friday said that farmers of the country are put behind bars for non- payment of small loans whereas big industrialists go "unpunished" even after failing to clear loans worth crores of rupees.

"The farmers of the country have not gained real freedom even after six decades of independence...they are jailed for not clearing loans worth thousands of rupees whereas big industrialists go unpunished even without returning crores of rupees of loan," the MP from Sultanpur said while addressing kisan panchayats on the first day of his two-day visit here.

Stressing that separate laws are enforced for farmers and industrialists, Gandhi said properties of farmers are attached if they fail to clear loans of Rs 50,000 and they are sent to jail.

But big industrialists spend a life of luxury and no one touches them even if they do not repay loans amounting to thousands of crores of rupees, he claimed.

Meanwhile, supporters of the BJP leader raised slogans demanding his projection as the party's chief ministerial candidate in the next state Assembly polls scheduled in 2017 during the kisan panchayats.

Gandhi who held panchayats at Rampur, Dhobiyapur, Gaiaghat and Nanpara distributed monetary help of Rs 2,500 each to the residents of Shivpur block who faced floods because of release of water from dams recently.