The Commission has taken suo-motu cognizance of a news report captioned "No cotton crop, farmers sell their kidneys instead" which appeared in 'The Times of India' dated 23 January 2006. Expressing its distress over the report, the Commission has sought comments from the Government of Maharashtra.
The press report, inter-alia, states that the farmers and the village elders of Village Shingnapur in Nandgaon tehsil of Amravati District in Maharashtra, after the suicide death of a farmer Jagdish Deshmukh, convened a meeting on January 15, where they passed resolution to offer their kidneys for sale to raise money for the next crop. They also displayed a banner, which reads 'Farmers Kidneys for sale'.