Maharashtra: The news of a Maharashtra onion grower sending his meagre income from the sale of onion to the Prime Minister’s office has been making rounds. However, as per a report in Dainik Bhasker, the PMO wrote back to the farmer saying that the farmer must make an online transfer as the PMO does not accept cash!
While this news has left eyebrows raised, a fact check made by the Indian Today says that the claim of the PMO asking the farmer to make an online transfer is far from the truth.
The report in Dainik Bhasker says that Sanjay Sathe, a farmer from Nashik in Maharashtra sent Rs 1,064 to the PMO through money order, only to bring to the notice of the Prime Minister the hardships faced by the farming community. Sathe had sent the money from the post office of Niphad in Nashik district on November 29.
While some of the most reputed newspapers have carried this news, India Today, in its fact check says that the farmer had sent the cash to the PMO through the local post office, but the money order was returned to him by the PMO.
Speaking to India Today, Sathe said, “I had sent a money order to the PMO on November 29. On December 10, I received a call from the post office stating that my money order has been rejected and I should collect my money.” He went to the post office and collected the money on December 10.
What was more shocking is that when the India Today team contacted Neelesh Desai, the Dainik Bhasker reporter, who filed the story, he said that he had no idea how the story was changed. “I had not mentioned a word about the PMO asking to make online transfer in my original copy, which was in Marathi. I do not know how this news appeared in Hindi, ” he told India Today.
Photo credit: India Today
