Farmers agitation: 20 policemen, 2 farmers injured

Pune, Mar 9 (UNI) As many as 20 policemen and two farmers were injured in the ongoing farmers agitation, which took an ugly turn today as police opened fire, when the villagers of Mandgaon resisted MIDC officials from entering their village to measure land for the phase-IV of the Hingewadi IT Park.

Police said there were five officers among the 20 policemen, who were injured as the villagers pelted stones.

Mandgaon Bachao Kruti Samiti (MBKS) spokeman Maruti Mohite said in the subsequent firing incident, two farmers, Popat Prakash Parkhe and Murli Maurya Sawant, sustained minor injuries.

The trouble started when villagers refused to allow the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) officials to enter the village to measure their land.

Police fired three rounds and resorted to a mild lathi charge.

The villagers, in turn, threw stones to keep the officials from entering, he said.

Meanwhile, ACP (Crime) Sanjay Jadhav, when contacted, said, ''I am totally unaware of what happened, I am looking at the court matter in this connection.'' When asked whether the farmers' injuries were due to the bullets as claimed by MBKS, he refused to comment.

Mr Mohite said the agitation, which was going on since March one began peacefully with morchas.

''We never had a problem as the Hingewadi land in the first phase belonged to the government. The second and third phases were built on a hilly and barren land for which we received a good compensation. However, we became suspicious as they started measuring the village's land for the phase-IV, which is fertile.

Mostly sugarcane is grown here, he said adding ''we will not allow it''.

The National Alliance for People's Movement has also joined the agitation on behalf of the farmers. Earlier, 114 farmers were rounded up and released two days ago for protesting against land acquisition for the phase-IV.

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