Sugar mill owners out of contact, Home Ministry decides to arrest them

Kathmandu, 16 December (2020) - Farmers from Sarlahi are agitating in Kathmandu for the due payment of sugarcanes sold to sugar mills. But sugar mill owners have shut down the factories and are out of contact.

In the midst of farmer's protests, the meeting at Home Ministry under the leadership of Minister of Home Affairs Ram Bahadur Thapa Badal decided to arrest the sugarcane mill owners who have failed to pay farmers the money.

Sugarcane mill owners in Sarlahi and Rautahat districts in Province-2 have not paid farmers the due amount for a long time.

Chief District Officers have ordered the owners to pay all due amounts to the farmers but they have neglected these orders.

The local administration is going to register a case of fraud on behalf of the farmers and arrest the sugarcane mill owners.

Shree Ram Sugar Mills at Garuda in Rautahat district is yet to pay around 350 million rupees to the farmers, Chief District Officer of Rautahat district Indra Dev Yadav told Lokantar.

"I have asked the farmers to register a complaint of fraud against mill owners," CDO Yadav said. "It is not possible to jointly register all the formal complaints of farmers. Therefore, I have asked some farmers in Rautahat, Bara and Sarlahi districts to lodge a joint complaint."

He said that subsequent to the formal complaint lodged by the farmers, the administration will obtain arrest warrant from the court and arrest the mill owners. The mill has three shareholders.

Hitesh Golchha, Bishal Agrawal and Anuj Agrawal have invested and are jointly running the mill but Bishal is the main shareholder, he said.

He informed that all three live in Kathmandu and they need to be arrested there.

"We had called them for discussion but they said that they would pay the due amount after shutting down the mill and government needs to allow that," CDO Yadav told Lokantar. "But farmers said that they would not allow to shut the mill down but are ready to take the due amount in multiple installments."

"The farmers have been saying that they sold their lands very cheaply and transferred the ownership to the mill owners. The mill has provided them the job opportunity and bought their produce so it is not wise to sell the mill, farmers say," CDO Yadav said.

Chief Distrcit Office of Sarlahi district Surendra Poudel said that Annapurna Sugar and General Industries Private Limited is yet to pay 170 million rupees to the farmers.

Mill owner Rakesh Agrawal has shut the mill down and has been staying in Kathmandu for a long time.

"We have not received the government's circular to arrest the owners." he said. "Kathmandu police may arrest them."