Congress slams Maharashtra farm loan waiver as 'sham', says 50% farmers excluded
Synopsis
Maharashtra Congress chief Harshwardhan Sapkal has called the Mahayuti government's farm loan waiver a 'facade', alleging that fine print on dates, loan types and repayment history will lock out more than half the state's farmers. The party is demanding a clean sweep of 7/12 records — turning the scheme into the next rural-distress flashpoint against Fadnavis.
Key Takeaways
MPCC chief Harshwardhan Sapkal alleged over 50% of Maharashtra farmers will be excluded from the new loan waiver scheme.
The waiver covers loans taken only between 1 April 2019 and 31 March 2025 , leaving older overdue accounts out.
Loans for wells, pipelines and cattle are excluded; scheme is limited to crop and restructured loans.
Beneficiaries of the earlier Mahatma Jotiba Phule Shetkari Samman waiver get a capped benefit of ₹50,000 .
Regular repayers must meet multi-year repayment conditions through 2026-27 to earn a ₹50,000 incentive.
Congress has demanded a complete clearance of all farmers' 7/12 land records.
Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) President Harshwardhan Sapkal on Wednesday, 3 June, attacked the farm loan waiver scheme announced by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Mahayuti government in Maharashtra, calling it a ‘complete facade’ that, he alleged, deliberately excludes more than 50 per cent of the state's farmers through restrictive eligibility rules. Sapkal demanded that the Devendra Fadnavis-led government wipe clean the 7/12 land records of all farmers in the state.
Key allegations against the scheme
Speaking to reporters in Mumbai, Sapkal said the waiver applies only to farmers who availed loans between 1 April 2019 and 31 March 2025, and whose accounts have turned overdue. Farmers who borrowed before this window, he argued, are now ineligible for fresh crop loans because their older accounts remain overdue — effectively shutting them out of the relief.
According to Sapkal's estimates, the number of excluded farmers is more than double those who stand to benefit. ‘Therefore, the benefit of this loan waiver must be extended to all overdue farmers,’ he said.
What is left out
Sapkal alleged that the scheme is restricted solely to crop loans and restructured loans, while loans taken for digging wells, laying pipelines, or purchasing cattle have been excluded. Farmers who previously benefited from the Mahatma Jotiba Phule Shetkari Samman loan waiver introduced by the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government, he claimed, will not get a full waiver of current defaults but only a capped benefit of ₹50,000.
‘The BJP government is inherently anti-farmer, but is beating the drum of having granted a loan waiver. In reality, the Mahayuti's sole intention is to deprive the maximum number of farmers of this benefit,’ Sapkal said.
Regular repayers also short-changed, Congress claims
Farmers who repay loans on time have also been ‘abandoned’, the MPCC chief alleged. To qualify for an incentive, regular payees must have availed a crop loan in at least two of the three financial years — 2022-23, 2023-24, and 2024-25 — and repaid them within the stipulated period. They must additionally repay crop loans taken in 2025-26 and 2026-27 on time to earn what Sapkal called a ‘meagre’ incentive of ₹50,000.
Echoes of past schemes
Sapkal recalled that during the previous Fadnavis tenure, a similarly publicised loan waiver scheme had, he alleged, trapped millions of farmers in procedural conditions. He compared the current rollout to the ‘Ladki Bahin’ scheme, under which he claimed 80 lakh women were denied benefits through tightened eligibility criteria.
What's next
The Congress is expected to escalate the demand for a blanket clearance of 7/12 records, setting up a fresh political flashpoint with the Mahayuti government as the rural distress narrative builds ahead of the next electoral cycle.
Point of View
000 for those who took the MVA-era waiver risks penalising repeat distress rather than addressing it. Until the government publishes a farmer-wise eligibility audit, the political claim of '50 per cent excluded' will be hard to refute and harder to ignore in a state still recovering from back-to-back crop-loss years.
NationPress
11 Aug 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Maharashtra farm loan waiver scheme announced by the Mahayuti government?
It is a state government scheme under the BJP-led Mahayuti, headed by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, offering relief on farm loans availed between 1 April 2019 and 31 March 2025 that have turned overdue. The Congress has alleged the eligibility window and conditions are too narrow.
Why is the Congress calling the loan waiver a 'sham'?
MPCC President Harshwardhan Sapkal has claimed that more than 50 per cent of farmers are excluded due to restrictive rules on loan dates, loan types and repayment history. He has alleged the number of excluded farmers is more than double those benefiting.
Which farmers are excluded from the scheme, according to Congress?
According to Sapkal, farmers with loans taken before April 2019, those who borrowed for wells, pipelines or cattle, and beneficiaries of the earlier Mahatma Jotiba Phule Shetkari Samman scheme face full or partial exclusion. Beneficiaries of the older scheme reportedly get a capped benefit of ₹50,000.
What do regular loan repayers get under the scheme?
Farmers who repay loans on time must have availed crop loans in at least two of the three years from 2022-23 to 2024-25 and repaid them on time, plus repay loans in 2025-26 and 2026-27, to be eligible. Only then do they qualify for an incentive of up to ₹50,000.
What is the Congress demanding from the Fadnavis government?
The Congress has demanded a complete clearance of the 7/12 land records of all farmers in Maharashtra and an extension of the waiver to every overdue farmer, regardless of when the loan was taken.
