Vinay Kumar Sorake, former Minister and Congress leader, has said that it would become necessary to stage a dharna in front of police stations if the police illegally register cases against women depositors of micro-finance firms. He was speaking at a conference held to protest against the harassment of women depositors by micro-finance firms here. It was organised by the Karnataka Runamukta Horata Samiti, Zilla Runamukta Horata Samiti, Karnataka Dalit Sangharsh Samiti, Bhima Garjane Samiti, Ambedkar Sene and Ambedkar Yuva Sena at the Mahatma Gandhi Bayalu Ranga Mandir, here.
Mr. Sorake said that there were complaints that the police were booking cases against the women depositors of micro-finance companies because of the pressure being brought on them by the latter. Legal action should be taken against these companies and the government should come to the rescue of these poor women, he said.
Radha Sundaresh, labour leader, said that it was incumbent upon the government to intervene and help the depositors. Uday Kumar Tallur, president of Bhima Garjane Samiti, said that it was the H.D. Kumaraswamy government which had introduced the Debt Relief Act. The benefit of this law should be extended to these women debtors of the micro-finance firms. The samiti will stage a dharna in front of the houses of the legislators if they did not raise this issue during the next session of the legislature. If the micro-finance firms forced women to repay, they should lodge a police complaint and the police should register cases against them under the Goonda Act, he said.
B.M. Bhat, president of the Karnataka Rajya Runamukta Horata Samiti, Manjunath Bailoor, president of the district unit of the samiti, Mamatha R. Padubelle, convener of the district unit of the samiti, Lily Mangaluru, Vinoda Moodbidri, and others were present.
