Mandsaur violence: SP DM sacked, CM appeals for peace in video message

The Madhya Pradesh government on Thursday transferred Swatantra Kumar Singh, the collector as well as Mandsaur superintendent of police. In a crackdown of sorts following the violence in the district, both district administration officials have been sacked. While the situation remained tense in Mandsaur on Thursday, incidents of violence were reported in 15 neighbouring districts of the region.

The Shivraj Singh Chouhan government also announced a Rs 6,000 crore crop loan settlement scheme. In a bid to pacify agitated farmers, the government proposed waiving of interests for those cultivators who have defaulted. This is short of the complete loan waiver that farmers have demanded. On Thursday afternoon he also released a video message appealing for peace and reiterated that his government was a pro-farmer government.

IAS officer Om Prakash Srivastava has been appointed as the new district collector and Manoj Kumar Singh as superintendent of police for the violence-hit region. Their appointments comes on the day Rahul Gandhi is to visit the region. The local administration has set up a police post outside Mandsaur, expect to intercept Rahul Gandhi when he reaches around noon.

On Thursday morning the police removed two dozen burnt trucks from the Mhow-Neemuch highway to opened the road. While internet ban continues to cripple the region, shops and establishments are opening in select areas. Janata Dal (United) leader Sharad Pawar is also expected to visit Mandsaur on Thursday.

OneIndia News