Some residents of Yenagi village near Saundatti carried the dead body of a farmer to the Deputy Commissioner’s office in protest against the lack of burial ground in Belagavi on Monday.
Protestors brought the dead body in a van for over 90 km from Saundatti to Belagavi. They sat to protest in front of the DC office and shouted slogans against the government.
Abdul Quadar, a small farmer, had died on Sunday. The protestors said that their village did not have burial grounds for either Hindus or Muslims. They announced they would bury the body in the same premises.
DC Nitesh Patil came out to talk to the protestors and promised that burial grounds will be sanctioned in the village. However, the protestors did not budge. They claimed that they had heard enough assurances from various officers and they had lost faith in the government. They sought a written assurance from the government. Despite the DC’s assurance, they were unwilling to disperse. Farmers leaders like Jayashree Gurannanavar and others refused to go away.
Later on, police dispersed the crowd and ensured that the protestors lifted the body in a van and took it away.
