ACTIVISTS of organisations of peasants, students, women and social workers held a demonstration in front of Madhya Pradesh Bhawan at Chankyapuri in New Delhi to protest the cruel murder of eight farmers at Mandsaur in police firing by the BJP led state government.

The Madhya Pradesh government consciously tried to break the unity of farmers by influencing sections of the leadership to withdraw the struggle; by not holding discussion with the leadership of the agitation on their genuine demands of debt waiver and remunerative price to crops. Through such insensitive handling of the farmers struggles the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government unleashed the police to crack down on the continuing agitation and killed eight farmers and injured hundreds of them. 

A delegation comprising Hannan Mollah, general secretary of All India Kisan Sabha, Mohit Pandey, president of JNU Students’ Union, Santi Snigda Mohanthy from Delhi Solidarity Group, Vijoo Krishnan and P Krishnaprasad of AIKS met the officer-in-charge of Madhya Pradesh Bhawan and gave a letter of protest and demand charter to the Chief Minister. Prof Aseemanand and Sanjeev addressed the gathering. 

The protesters demanded immediate suspension of the police officers responsible for the Mandsaur killing, compensation and job to the family member of the deceased, effective and impartial judicial inquiry, and loan waiver for all peasantry and ensuring remunerative price to all crops.

There were protests in different parts of the country and burning of effigy of the chief minister of Madhya Pradesh.