Mayhem In Mandsaur

The Shivraj Singh Chouhan government remained complacent as resentment was building up among the farmers of Madhya Pradesh over the unremunerative prices of farm produce. Then came Mandsaur to wake it up.

- Purnima S.Tripathi

AN OUTBURST OF INDIGNATION FROM members of the farming community, who had been loosely gathered for a protest at Pipliya Mandi near Mandsaur in the Malwa region of Madhya Pradesh on June 6, spiralled out of control. Blood and thunder followed.

Farmers’ resentment had been gathering strength for some weeks in the State. Distressed farmers had called for a 10-day agitation from June 1 to draw the government’s attention to their plight: abundant crops but low returns. On June 6, thousands of farmers gathered at Pipliya Mandi to stage a protest. Soon they went on the rampage, forcing shops, particularly vegetable shops, to down shutters. The agitation quickly spread to Indore, Dewas, Shajapur, Sehore, Bhopal and other places in the State. The government was not prepared for such a massive agitation. On June 5, completely unaware of the storm that was brewing, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had announced, in the presence of some farmers affiliated to the Bharatiya Kisan Sangh, that the farmers had called off their agitation in the State.

The next day, angry farmers blocked the national highway, torched buses and trucks, looted and set fire to shops and forced the closure of markets, especially fruit and vegetable mandis, in order to cut off supply to the cities. The police and paramilitary forces opened fire on the stone-throwing farmers, killing five of them instantly and injuring several others. One farmer succumbed to injuries three days later. What prompted the firing is a mystery. On camera, the District Collector, S.K. Singh (who was subsequently transferred), denied giving orders to open fire. The Home Minister also said no order had been given to open fire. The situation in Mandsaur was so volatile that the government imposed a curfew.