Taking the government and the police by surprise, farmers’ organisations launched an indefinite ‘rasta roko’ one km away from the Suvarna Soudha here on Monday, violating prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code. They were arrested and taken to the Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee yard later.
The agitation was launched at the end of their daylong protest demanding that the government take steps to release dues to sugarcane growers, even as a discussion on the issue was allowed earlier on the first day of the monsoon session of the legislature.
Traffic hit
Karnataka Kabbu Belegara Sangha president Kurubur Shanthkumar, Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha president Kodihalli Chandrashekar and leaders of other farmers’ organisations are leading the agitation. Traffic on the busy Pune-Bengaluru NH4 was disrupted following the protest.
Mr. Shanthkumar told The Hindu that the agitation would not be withdrawn till Chief Minister Siddaramaiah personally came to the site and made a categorical announcement to clear the dues within a week.
“We have informed our families not to wait for us. We have taken a bold decision to continue the agitation come what may. We are fed up with drama and pretention of the government and the adamant attitude of sugar mills who are not implementing the orders by the government and the High Court on the sugarcane price for the year 2013-14. Similar agitations will be taken up all over the State from Tuesday as we are not left with any other option,” he said.
The farmers’ organisations earlier staged a protest near Kondaskoppa village, more than a km away from the soudha. They had set a 2 p.m. deadline for the government to announce a categorical commitment that it would clear sugarcane dues of Rs. 4,200 crore for 2013-14 and 2014-15 within a week.
With no such assurance forthcoming, the farmers marched towards the soudha but were arrested by the police.
Mr. Shanthkumar said the police took them to Bagewadi and then back to the place from where they were arrested. The ‘rasta roko’ was launched thereafter.
The farmers are also demanding that the government fix Rs. 10 lakh as the compensation for the family of farmers committing suicide due to indebtedness and crop failure.
