Besides Patar, the other three poets and writers who announced that they would return their awards were Jaswinder Singh, Baldev Singh Sadaknama and Darshan Bhuttar.
Sources said that Punjab government refused to accept the demand of farmers for considerable enhancement in compensation for losses due to whitefly pest attack on cotton crop.
The incident created a nationwide outrage with condemnation from all major political parties including the state's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, which is in alliance with the Sena in both the centre and in Maharashtra.
The girl was missing from her house since Friday evening. She was later found lying and crying in near a railway track by a passer-by
The writers who announced giving up their literary awards included Ajmer Singh Aulakh, Atamjit Singh, Gurbachan Bhullar and Canada-based writer Waryam Sandhu.
Just hours after Indian Prime Minister compared Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal to Nelson Mandela, Congress leader Amarinder Singh ridiculed the remark and termed it an "insult" to the legendary South African anti-apartheid icon.