MP farmers block national highways; 9 arrested

The Congress and the Centre of Indian Trade Unions have extended support to the blockade.

A farmer union leader and eight others were arrested on Friday for blocking national highways in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh.

Rashtriya Kisan Mazdoor Sangh Shivkumar Sharma and supporters blocked the national highways passing through the state to press for loan waiver and remunerative prices for farm produce.

The Congress and the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) have extended support to the blockade. Heavy deployment of police force was in place to prevent any untoward incident. The blckade came in the wake of recent violence in Mandsaur.

Curfew was clamped in Mandsaur district earlier this month after five farmers were killed in police firing and another succumbed to his injuries during widespread protests demanding loan waiver and remunerative prices for their produce. In fact, Mandsaur violence has become a political issue between two national parties.

On June 8, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi was detained by the police while he was on his way to Mandsaur to meet the kin of the farmers killed in police firing. Scindia, his party colleague Kantilal Bhuria and a number of Congress supporters were detained by the police on June 13 at the Nayagaon-Jaora toll booth in Ratlam when they were headed towards Mandsaur.

(With agency inputs)