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Maharashtra opposition strike to protest apathy to farmer's plight

The Congress-led opposition yesterday staged a day-long hunger strike in Mantralaya, protesting against the Maharashtra government's apathy towards the plight of farmers and deteriorating law and order situation in the state.

Leader of the opposition in the legislative assembly Madhukarrao Pichad said legislators of the other parties, including the Samata Party and the Republican Party of India, have also joined in the strike below the portrait of the Shivaji in Mantralaya.

He said that there is no response from the government since both Chief Minister Manohar Joshi and Deputy Chief Minister Gopinath Munde were out of town. "We will continue our agitation," he said.

The agitation began at 10 am in the morning and ended at 5 pm. The legislators shouted slogans against the failure of the government to take measures on some burning issues.

The opposition parties demanded immediate declaration of 'wet drought' in certain parts of the state, measures to control law and order in Bombay, provision of onions at reasonable prices, in line with Delhi and Rajasthan, the immediate procurement of cotton, the provision of essential commodities through the public distribution system and measures to end the stalemate caused by the sugarcane labourers' strike.

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