The political turmoil in Madhya Pradesh went up a notch on Tuesday, June 13, after Gujarat's quota activist Hardik Patel and Congress leader Jyotiraditya Scindia were arrested while trying to make their way to Mandsaur.
Political rivals of the BJP have been looking to score brownie points with farmers ever since five farmers were killed in a police firing on June 6 while they were protesting against government policy and demanding some sops.
Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi was on June 8 taken into preventive custody while trying to meet the deceased farmers' kin in Mandsaur, and looked to play the victim card by initially saying he would not seek bail. He was eventually released and met the relatives of the deceased farmers, and assured them that the Congress would help in their fight for justice.
Scindia arrested
Jyotiraditya Scindia — whose father Madhavrao Scindia was a political bigwig from Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh — was on Tuesday afternoon stopped by the police from entering Mandsaur as he approached with his supporters.
He tried to defy the cops, saying that since Section 144 of the IPC had been imposed in the area, he alone would go to meet the protesting farmers and their kin in Mandsaur. "Who will stop a solitary man from venturing out [during such a time]?" he asked.
However, the police detained him under Section 151 of the IPC, which is usually slapped on a person who has defied the provisions of Section 144.
Patel in custody
Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS) chief and Patel quota agitation chief Hardik Patel had tried a similar move earlier on Tuesday. He was apparently looking to project himself and his struggle as pro-farmer — a move that could come in handy before the upcoming Gujarat Assembly elections.
Patel was detained in Neemuch, and eventually wound up meeting those who were injured in the police firing of June 6. He was subsequently arrested, along with Janata Dal-United (JD-U) leader Akhilesh Katiyar, who was accompanying him.
