RAF deployed in violence-hit Mandsaur in MP

New Delhi/Mandsaur, Jun 8: Contingents of Rapid Action Force (RAF) were on Thursday deployed in Madhya Pradesh's violence-hit Mandsaur district where the situation remained tense.

Two companies of RAF, comprising around 100 men each, have moved into Pipliamandi in Mandsaur, the site of Tuesday's shooting of five farmers, police said.

While two companies of RAF have been posted in Garoth area in the district, another two have been deployed along the Mwoh-Neemuch Highway to prevent any untoward incidents, they said.

The situation is tense but under control, police said.

Collector, SP of Mandsaur transferred

The Shivraj Singh Chouhan government on Thursday transferred the collector and superintendent of police of Mandsaur district which witnessed the death of five farmers in police firing.

Mandsaur Collector Swatantra Kumar Singh is transferred as deputy secretary Mantralaya. Singh was replaced with OP Shrivastava, official sources said.

The government also transferred Mandsaur SP, OP Tripathi and posted Manoj Kumar Singh in place of him, the sources added.

DIG Ratlam range Avinash Sharma is camping in Pipliamandi where farmers, agitating for the last seven days for loan waiver and better crop prices, defied prohibitory orders yesterday, beat up officials and policemen and resorted to violence and arson.

Senior police officials have also been deployed to oversee the law and order situation in all sub-divisions of Mandsaur district, the official said.

Farmers had on Wednesday resorted to violence and arson in western Madhya Pradesh despite prohibitory measures, posing a major challenge for chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and providing a rallying point for the opposition parties.

In view of the volatile situation, the Centre had rushed 1,100 personnel of RAF to the violence-hit state where the farmers have been agitating for loan waiver and better crop prices.

The Chouhan government had sought to cool the tempers by announcing certain measures, including a loan settlement scheme for those cultivators who had defaulted on repayment of farm loan borrowed by them earlier.

The scheme will cover around six lakh farmers, with accumulated dues of Rs 6000 crore, according to the government.

Rahul leaves for Mandsaur, police say they will stop him

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Thursday left Delhi for Mandsaur even as the local police made it clear that he will not be allowed to enter the district.

Gandhi left on Thursday morning for the district and would enter Madhya Pradesh from Rajasthan.

However, superintendent of police of Neemuch Manoj Kumar Singh said the Congress leader will not be allowed to enter the violence-hit district where the situation remains tense.

If the Congress leader tries to enter the district, he will be detained, the SP said.

The Congress on Wednesday termed as "coldblooded murder" the killing of five farmers in police firing in Madhya Pradesh and questioned the prime minister's silence over it.

The Congress accused the BJP of "acting as a curse of death for Indian farmers".

AICC spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi said yesterday that it was insulting and unfortunate that the BJP-led NDA government was in denial mode over the firing and accused it of spreading rumours and canards over who fuelled the farmers' protest.

He also hit out at the BJP for denying permission to people who wanted to go and express solidarity with the bereaved farmers, including Gandhi.

The Congress vice-president is visiting Mandsaur to meet the kin of the five persons who were killed in violence during the farmers' agitation.