The state government has left it to the home department to maintain law and order in Karad on Monday, when chief minister Prithviraj Chavan attends the death anniversary programme of Late Y B Chavan. The decision follows the threat by Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana to prevent the CM from entering the town.
The Sanghatana’s agitation is likely to vitiate the atmosphere in Karad, the hometown of Chavan. Minister for cooperation Harshawardhan Patil told media persons on the sidelines of the centenary programme of the state town planning department that the home department will take care of the situation. He made it clear that Chavan would go to Karad and he would also accompany him.
The farmers’ organisations have been demanding the rate of Rs 3,200 and Rs3,000 per tonne for sugarcane during this crushing season.
Chavan had convened an all-party meeting with the farmer’s organisations which was attended by Shetkari Sanghatana leaders Sharad Joshi, Raghunath Patil, Raju Shetty, ministers Harshawardhan Patil, Balasaheb Thorat, Patangrao Kadam, R R Patil and opposition leaders Gopinath Munde, Vinod Tavde, Diwakar Ravte and Bala Nandgavkar. The meeting was inconclusive and it was decided to take up the issue with prime minister Manmohan Singh.
Chavan will meet the PM in New Delhi on Tuesday along a delegation of all-party MPs and farmers’ leaders.
Harshawardhan Patil told media persons on Sunday that Chavan had cancelled his appointments on Saturday and held a meeting in this regard for almost three hours. He said that Shetty was given maximum time to speak and present his views and since some of the issues like import duty and export subsidy are to be decided by the Union Government, it was decided to meet the prime minister.
Chavan had appealed to the Sanghatana leaders to withdraw their agitation and not to resort to violence but to no avail. Patil said that the home department will take care of the law and order situation in Karad where the CM would pay homage to the first chief minister of Maharashtra at his memorial.
Dist admn on high alert; heavy force deployed
Karad and its adjoining areas have been turned into a fortress in view of the agitation by the Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana. Heavy police bandobast has been deployed in the town and patrolling on the state and national highway stretch outside Karad has been intensified.
Preeti Sangam, the confluence of Krishna and Koyna rivers where homage is paid to Late Y B Chavan, has been converted into a prohibited area. The district administration is on a high alert and eight police officers and 120 police constables have been deployed near the memorial.
On the other hand, thousands of farmers are camping at Pachawadeshwar, 5-6 km from Karad, to prevent chief minister Prithviraj Chavan and Union agriculture minister Sharad Pawar from entering the town.
Sanghatana leader Raju Shetty, state unit president Sadabhau Khotand, district chief Panjabrao Patil and others are camping here.
Shetty and Khot have launched ‘Thiyya Andolan’ at Pachavadeshwar. Farmers have gathered to participate in the agitation. Police have closed the gates of the park where the memorial is situated since Sunday morning.
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