Farmers call off protest over Mahadayi row

Farmers from the Mahadayi river basin, protesting in the city for the last couple of days demanding that the BJP government at both the Centre and State implement the tribunal verdict by issuing a gazette notification, called off their protest on Saturday.

The farmers said they will approach the court if the issue is not resolved at the earliest.

The protesting farmers had sought Governor Vajubhai Valas intervention and wanted to meet him.

Farmers' leader Veeresh Sobaradmath said they have submitted their petition to Raj Bhavan officials as the governor did not meet them.

"Today we have withdrawn the protest not because Deputy Chief Minister (Govind Karjol) came and met us, we had not asked him to come. We had not asked any political party representatives to come and support," he told reporters here.

Accusing all the three political parties--Congress, BJP and JD(S)--of reaping political benefit on the Mahadayi issue, Sobaradmath said, they should be "ashamed."
Citing assembly elections in Maharashtra, he said "We will have to wait for few days, and our government will find a resolution to the issue."