A farmer from Maharashtra’s Akola district died by suicide on November 26 after allegedly being relentlessly harassed by local moneylenders who demanded far more than the loan he had already repaid. Before taking his life, Gopal Wamanrao Patkhede recorded a video naming the lenders and saying he was unable to bear the pressure and threats any longer.
According to the complaint filed by his brother, Patkhede had borrowed ₹1 lakh from moneylender Rakesh Bhupendra Gandhi at an interest rate of 20% and had fully repaid both the principal and interest. Despite this, the lenders allegedly began demanding an additional ₹8 lakh. The pressure escalated to the point where they allegedly forced him to transfer a substantial portion of his farmland into their names.
Patkhede stated in his video that the lenders were not allowing him to live in peace, identifying Gandhi and Bunty Arun Kharal as the individuals tormenting him. Following his death, police registered a case against Gandhi, Kharal, and two others — Dilip Apparao Deshmukh and Santosh Baliram Sawant. Gandhi and Kharal are accused of repeatedly threatening the deceased farmer.
The incident has triggered widespread anger in the village, with several residents alleging that predatory moneylending practices have been common in the area and that Patkhede’s case reflects a larger pattern of exploitation.
Local farmers expressed shock and frustration, questioning how a borrower who took a ₹1 lakh loan and repaid it in full could be pushed to the point of having to pay eight times the amount and forcibly surrender land.
