Tirurpur: The family members of the ailing farmer who died unable to draw money from his frozen bank account for treatment and farmers association have demanded the bank for a compensation.R Kanagaraj, 53, a farmer from Kullampalayam near Pongalur in Tirupur whose bank account was frozen because he defaulted on a loan died at a private hospital in Coimbatore on Friday.Working president of Tamil Nadu Farmers Association (non–political) N S P Vetri said that Kanagaraj had a bank account in the nationalised bank at Kethanur.But the account was frozen allegedly after Kanagaraj could not repay the loan of Rs 75,000 obtained by his father Rangasamy who died in 2017.Kanagaraj has signed as the guarantor in the loan application.
Kanagaraj told the bank that he needed time to repay the loan since he was unable to mobilise the fund due to Covid-induced lockdown.Meanwhile, Kanagaraj who underwent a kidney transplant sometime back fell ill and was hospitalized.
His wife and two daughters who were dependent on the two-acre farm land for a living were unable to generate money needed for the treatment.
“The family and the relatives sought the bank to defreeze the account which was not heeded.
On behalf of our association, we made multiple representations to the bank as well,” said Vetri.However, the account was not released.The farmers’ association members managed to pool in around Rs 3 lakh.
“However, Kangaraj was dejected by the trouble he and his family had to undergo.
Eventually he died,” Vetri said.The bank representatives have told the district administration that they have unfrozen the account after Kanagaraj’s family requested.
They told the authorities that the loan was given 10 years back and even the interest was not paid.