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Several killed as huge blaze engulfs London tower block

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london-fire-Grenfell Tower

London: Several people have died and over 50 people have been hospitalized after a huge fire ripped through a 24-storey London apartment block early on Wednesday, according to emergency services.

Firefighters were alerted to the blaze at Grenfell Tower, an apartment block located in the neighbourhood of Kensington, shortly after Tuesday midnight, reports Efe news.

London Fire Commissioner Dany Cotton said that a number of people are thought to have died.

“I am very sad to confirm that there have been a number of fatalities. I cannot confirm the number at this time due to the size and complexity of this building. It would clearly be wrong for me to speculate further.

“In my 29 years of being a firefighter I have never ever seen anything of this scale,” Cotton said.

Councilor Nick Paget-Brown, who represents the area in which Grenfell Tower is located, said the tower block contains some 120 individual apartments, many of which house young families, meaning the number of people trapped by the blaze could run into the hundreds.

Some 200 firefighters and 40 fire trucks were deployed to the scene and emergency workers were battling to get the fire under control.

London’s Ambulance Service (LAS) said over 50 patients had been taken to five different hospitals across London following the blaze.

LAS Assistant Director Stuart Crichton said: “Over 100 of our medics are working hard to respond to this incident, including ambulance crews, advanced paramedics, advanced trauma teams from London’s Air Ambulance and those staff managing the incident in our special operations centre.”

Investigators were working to establish the cause of the blaze.

London’s Metropolitan Police, who also confirmed that there had been several fatalities, said that “a number of people” were being treated for a range of injuries and smoke inhalation and that “residents were continuing to be evacuated” from the tower.

Police have closed off roads nearby and asked people to avoid the area.

An earlier report said that at least 600 people were believed to have been inside the flats when the fire began.

Residents who escaped spoke of others trapped and screaming for help, with some holding children from windows and others jumping from upper floors, the Telegraph newspaper reported.

Pictures from the scene showed flames engulfing the block and a plume of smoke visible across the capital, while others showed residents looking out of windows in the block.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan called it a “major incident”.

Paul Munakr, who lives on the seventh floor, managed to escape.

“As I was going down the stairs, there were firefighters, truly amazing firefighters that were actually going upstairs, to the fire, trying to get as many people out of the building as possible,” he told the BBC.

A witness, Jody Martin, said: “I watched one person falling out, I watched another woman holding her baby out the window… hearing screams.”

(IANS)

Keep dreaming, taunts Vijay Mallya as India fails to give UK court evidence

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Vijay Mallya. Photo: Reuters

Vijay Mallya. Photo: Reuters

London: Vijay Mallya, the embattled tycoon wanted in India on loan defaults to several banks amounting to nearly Rs 9,000-crore, Tuesday claimed he has “enough evidence” to plead his case and taunted authorities saying, “you can keep dreaming about a billion pounds”.

“I deny all allegations that have been made and I will continue to deny them,” said the 61-year-old flamboyant boss of the erstwhile Kingfisher airlines, who appeared before Westminster Magistrates Court here for his extradition case hearing.

Chief Magistrate Emma Louise Arbuthnot granted bail to Mallya until December 4. The next hearing has been set for July 6.

“I have not eluded any court…I have enough evidence to prove my case,” Mallya told reporters outside the court.

“I dont make statements to the media because anything I say is twisted. There is enough evidence, that will speak,” said Mallya, who was accompanied to court by his son Siddharth Mallya, a female companion and a small group of supporters.

Mallya was arrested by Scotland Yard in April and has been out on bail, which was further extended until December 4 — also tentatively fixed as the final date of hearing in the case.

Mallya claimed that no loans were diverted anywhere.

“You can keep dreaming about a billion pounds; you cannot prove anything without facts,” Mallya told reporters.

Arbuthnot, who presided over what is referred to as a “case management hearing”, said, “Make sure you do not break any conditions of your bail. If you do so, you will be back in custody.”

Mallyas defence team, which is being led by the firm Joseph Hague Aaronson LLP, said a second extradition request is expected from the Indian government.

In the dock at Court Room 3 of Westminster Magistrates Court, Mallya spoke only to confirm his name and date of birth — 18 December, 1955.

The judge set July 6 as the next hearing date for further case management matters but Mallya was exempted from attending that hearing after his defence team claimed he was “swarmed by media cameras” on his entry to the court today.

“It was literally a battle to get into court,” said Mallyas lawyer barrister Ben Watson.

He urged the judge to put barriers for the media outside the court for future hearings, to which the judge responded by excusing Mallya from the next court appearance while she looks into her authority to impose such barriers.

Britains Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), represented by Aaron Watkins, presented the case in court on behalf of the Indian authorities and pushed for a final hearing date in December.

“We have a good and close working relationship (with the Indian government) in this case,” Watkins told the judge when asked if, “India is quite prompt in their responses”.

Mallyas defence team wanted a final hearing date in March or April 2018, claiming they are yet to receive the “final evidence” from the Indian authorities and also believe a second extradition request is coming.

The second request is believed to be related to the Enforcement Directorates (ED) case against Mallya.

CPS argued that the government of India will deal responsibly with any future extradition request and that a conclusion of the current case by December was preferable.

The judge settled on December 4 as the final hearing date, which will be reviewed at the next hearing in July.

“If all the ducks are in a row by then, we will proceed with December,” the judge said.

“There might be a few more hearings in this case in the coming months to deal with case management or any issues that arise, before the final hearing takes place, at which the full arguments from both sides in this case will be heard by the Judge,” explained Jasvinder Nakhwal, partner at Peters and Peters Solicitors LLP and member of the UKs Extradition Lawyers Association.

The CPS had met a joint team of Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials in London last month to thrash out details of the case.

“Our aim is to build a strong, infallible case and these meetings will help resolve issues across the table. The CPS will be arguing based on documents provided by CBI and ED, therefore a joint team is here to address queries they may have,” official sources had said after the meeting held in early May.

A CBI official also flew in from Delhi for todays hearing.

Mallya also slammed the media for its “frenzy”.

“I go to cheer India in a cricket match and it becomes a media frenzy. Its better I dont say anything,” he said, adding that two people, in a drunken state, called him a “thief” outside the stadium. “There were many who wished me well.”

Last week, Mallya was welcomed with chants of “chor, chor” by Indian cricket fans as he arrived to watch the India vs South Africa Champions Trophy match at The Oval cricket ground in London.

Earlier, he had caused a stir by his attendance at the India vs Pakistan match in Birmingham after which he had declared on Twitter that he would be attending all India matches in the ongoing ICC Champions Trophy.

Mallya, who is wanted in India for Kingfisher Airlines default on loans worth nearly Rs 9,000-crore, has been in the UK since March 2016 and was arrested by Scotland Yard on an extradition warrant on April 18.

He had attended a central London police station for his arrest and was released on conditional bail a few hours later after providing a bail bond worth 650,000 pounds, assuring the court of abiding by all conditions associated with extradition proceedings, such as the surrender of his passport and a ban on him possessing any travel documents.

An initial case management hearing date of May 17 was postponed to June 13.

If the District Judge rules in favour of extradition at the end of the trial, the UK home secretary must order Mallyas extradition within two months of the appropriate day. However, the case can go through a series of appeals before arriving at a conclusion.

India and the UK have an Extradition Treaty, signed in 1992, but so far only one extradition has taken place under the arrangement — Samirbhai Vinubhai Patel, who was sent back to India last October to face trial in connection with his involvement in the post-Godhra riots of 2002.

However, unlike Mallya, he had submitted to the extradition order without legal challenge.

(PTI)

UP man denied ambulance, carries home dead body of 7-month-old niece

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Dana Majhi

Kaushambi: In a re-run of the Dana Majhi incident, the uncle of a seven-month-old girl, who died during treatment at the district hospital, had to carry her body on a bicycle as his plea for an ambulance fell on deaf ears.

The incident, which took place on Monday, prompted the authorities to lodge an FIR against the doctor on duty and the driver of the ambulance on Tuesday. The hospital too has launched an inquiry in this regard.

Seven-month-old Poonam, the daughter of Anant Kumar, a daily wage labourer of Malak Saddi village in Majhanpur tehsil in the district, was admitted to the hospital two days ago after she started vomiting, accompanied by loose motion.

After getting her admitted to the hospital, Kumar left for Allahabad to arrange money for her treatment asking his brother-in-law, Brijmohan, to look after her.

“My niece died during treatment on Monday. Despite repeated pleas to the hospital, no vehicle was made available to carry her body. I had to borrow a bicycle and carry it for almost 10 km to reach the village,” Brijmohan told reporters.

When contacted, S K Upadhyay, Chief Medical Officer (CMO), Kaushambi, said, “We have taken cognisance of the incident. An inquiry has also been initiated.

Once the report of the inquiry is available, we will take stringent action against the guilty.” Hospital sources claimed that an ambulance could not be arranged as there was no budget for fuel. District Magistrate, Kaushambi, Manish Kumar, told that an FIR was lodged against the doctor on duty, Vivek Kumar, and the ambulance driver, Ashish Kumar Pandey, who allegedly refused to carry the body.

On May 20, the pregnant wife of a man from Chak Ahmadipur village in the district was declared “brought dead” by the hospital authorities. As he was denied an ambulance, the man carried the body of his wife on a stretcher for some distance. Subsequently, sensing trouble, the doctors at the hospital arranged for an ambulance to transport the body.

In a similar incident, Dana Majhi, a tribal, had to carry his wife’s body on his shoulder for over 10 km, with his daughter walking alongside, in Odisha’s Kalahandi district in August, last year as the hospital authorities failed to arrange for a hearse.

The incident had triggered a controversy and led to widespread criticism after it was reported in the media. Last month, a labourer had to carry the body of his 15- year-old son on his shoulders after allegedly being turned away by the doctors at a government-run hospital in Etawah.

(PTI)

Kumaraswamy denied anticipatory bail in illegal mining case

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Kumaraswamy

Bengaluru: Former Karnataka chief minister and state JD(S) president H D Kumaraswamy was today denied anticipatory bail by a special court here in an illegal mining case.

Lokayukta Court judge Gopal rejected the prayer of Kumaraswamy, who has been summoned by the Lokayukta’s special investigation team in connection with the case.

Kumaraswamy, the son of former prime minister H D Deve Gowda, is accused of putting immense pressure on the then Commissioner of Mines, Gangaram Baderiya, to clear afile in favour of Janthakal mining firm in 2007, when he was the chiefminister.

Baderiya, now the principal secretary (revenue), was arrested by the SIT on May 15 for allegedly allowing the firm to illegally lift one million tonnes of mined ore in Chitradurga based on forged documents.

The SIT has summoned Kumaraswamy, following the arrest of Baderiya. Meanwhile, speaking to reporters, Kumaraswamy said he had no role in the case and would come out clean. “I do not have any role in this case… My legal team will bail me out… I will prove myselfinnocent,” the state chief of the Janata Dal (Secular) said.

Earlier, Kumaraswamy had accused the Congress government of targeting him ahead ofthe 2018 Assembly polls.

(Agencies)

5paisa leveraging technology to enhance the attraction of discount broking beyond mere cost savings

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5paisa

Discount broking was a novelty item, a curio animal in the overall scheme of things of the Indian equity markets. However, the past 3-4 years have seen this curio concept take firm roots and grow faster in scale compared to the overall equity brokerage sector growth.

The reasons behind this are not far to seek. While most market observers talk of cost differential as the main reason, the fact is that cost cuts alone have never turned a market on its head. The online space is full of stories, from 1999 to 2-16, where businesses have offered service at lower costs, often at zero or negative costs, and none have been able to sustain. It is always the service element, at the price point, which makes the difference. So then what exactly is it about the discount broking business that can provide a good service experience?

The primary need is client convenience. Prakarsh Gagdani, CEO, 5paisa.com elucidates that account opening ease is a paramount need in the industry where a mere 3-5% of the population has demat accounts. Bank accounts, with the Jan Dhan trigger, are today around 40-45% of the population and that in itself is a challenging procedure for the financial non-literate population. Therefore, ease of procedure is the key. As Gagdani asserts, if documentation is in place, a client can have an account opened at 5paisa in an hour. Indeed, with the e-KYC process in place, hardly any physical signatures are needed and most of the work can be done on the basis of Aadhar, bank account documents and similar verifiable papers.

Likewise, the speed and ease of transaction in the case of a technology-driven discount broking business with minimal human interface is another influencer. Like in the case of account opening, speed, simplicity and convenience are big factors.
Cost is no doubt a vital influencer. From the investor viewpoint, the flat cost per transaction, irrespective of size is a cost saver. It also means that any investment advice given by the broker does not have any element of greed because the transaction fee is the same irrespective of the size of the transaction. With no push from the brokerage side, the individual will actually experience a more relaxed transaction. The equity market is rife with instances where the broker pressure actually unbalances the client and he loses sight of his original aims and gets into transactions which are regretted later.

Then comes the post-transaction processes, here again discount brokers have their digital interfaces in place. As Gagdani explains, when the MIS in the form of contracts and ledgers is put online and available on demand, the comfort factor is expanded. This process, which has much investment behind it, is a massive organisational convenience for both the company and the customer.

Everything said and done, the Indian equity market is absolutely ripe for the discount broking model. In the US equity market, where retail is 40% of total volumes, discount broking is 70% of the retail volumes, which indicates that it has a quarter of the total market. In India, by contrast, while the retail volume is comparable, discount broking is barely 7-8% of the total volume.

Therefore conceptually, given the growth visible in equities, the massive potential for rise in equity-holding households (as evinced by the gap in bank and demat accounts) and then the potential for discount broking as a proportion of total brokerages, the business case for discount broking is highly exciting.

With its multi-product offering and a platform giving much convenience to the client at any stage, 5paisa.com is definitely a differentiated player in the broking space. Apart from the discount broking services, it also includes other value-added products like mutual funds and insurance. 5paisa.com has invested around Rs.10 crore in its infrastructure, including in robotics. It has created a Robo Advisory platform, where investors get options for their investment allocations with zero or minimal human interface, in a very convenient and user-friendly manner.

Apart from the ease of account opening and operations, 5paisa.com also provides education on myriad aspects of the product bouquet that it offers to investors. It is effectively a full-service product offering to investors at the cost level of discount broking. 5paisa.com also intends to grow its product offering to other areas like personal and vehicle loans, where its technology investment can be properly leveraged for online transaction fulfilment.

Given the immense scope visible for discount broking and the differential position that 5paisa.com is creating for itself, it also offers tangible value for those investors who would want to have exposure to discount broking as an investment. This is because it is the first such business to be listed on any domestic exchange (as a spin-off from its parent).

Al Jazeera off the table in any Gulf crisis talks: FM

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Qatari news broadcaster will not be discussed in any negotiations to end blockade against Doha, says foreign minister.

Al Jazeera staff work inside the network's headquarters in the capital Doha on June 8 [Naseem Zeitoon/Reuters]

Al Jazeera staff work inside the network’s headquarters in the capital Doha on June 8 [Naseem Zeitoon/Reuters]

by Al Jazeera

Al Jazeera Media Network is an “internal affair” and there will be no discussion about the fate of the Doha-based broadcaster with nations that imposed a blockade on Qatar, its foreign minister says.

Reports have suggested countries behind the economic sanctions on Qatar – Saudi Arabia, UAE, Bahrain, Egypt, and others – are demanding the closure of Al Jazeera, a media group that has been targeted in the Middle East because of its critical reporting.

Speaking at a press conference in Paris, France on Monday, Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said he had no idea why the Saudi Arabia-led bloc of nations imposed a blockade on Qatar.

“It’s not about Iran or Al Jazeera,” he said. “We have no clue about the real reasons… Qatar is willing to sit and negotiate about whatever is related to Gulf security.”

But he said Qatar does not accept “foreign dictations”.

“Doha rejects discussing any matter related to Al Jazeera channel as it considers it an internal affair,” Qatar News Agency quoted the foreign minister as saying. “Decisions concerning the Qatari internal affairs are Qatari sovereignty – and no one has to interfere with them.”

After the crisis erupted last week, Saudi Arabia closed Al Jazeera’s bureau in Riyadh and halted its operating license, accusing the network of promoting “terrorist groups” in the region.

Jordanian officials quickly followed announcing the closure of the Al Jazeera bureau in Amman and the withdrawal of its operating license.

Egypt long ago kicked Al Jazeera out of the country after confiscating its Cairo bureau’s equipment.

The government of President Abdel Fatah el-Sisi has locked up several Al Jazeera journalists for months. Producer Mahmoud Hussein has been jailed in Egypt now for 175 days.

Journalist watchdog Reporter’s Without Borders has condemned the crackdown on Al Jazeera.

Al Jazeera denounced the Saudis’ restrictions against it saying, “We call upon the government to respect the freedom of press and allow journalists to continue do their job free of intimidation and threats.”

Writing last week in the Hindustan Times, former online Al Jazeera editor Ruben Banerjee said it was clear why some nations are going after the media network during the Qatar crisis.

“To stifle the voice of Al Jazeera, which prides itself for being the ‘voice of the voiceless’, will be criminal,” wrote Banerjee.

“Like every other organisation, Al Jazeera suffers from cliques and cabals… But these blemishes notwithstanding, Al Jazeera remains a beacon in a region where freedom of expression is at a premium.”

Hundreds suffer from food poisoning in camp near Mosul

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Iraqi officials say at least two people have died after falling ill from an iftar meal in an IDP camp outside Mosul.

More than 750,000 people have been displaced from Mosul since October [File: Thaier Al-Sudaini/Reuters]

More than 750,000 people have been displaced from Mosul since October [File: Thaier Al-Sudaini/Reuters]

by Al Jazeera

At least two people have died and hundreds more have fallen ill after suffering food poisoning in a camp for displaced Iraqis east of Mosul, officials said.

People started vomiting and some fainted after eating the fast-breaking iftar meal on Monday, lawmaker Zahed Khatoun, a member of the Iraqi parliament’s committee for displaced people told Reuters news agency on Tuesday.

Iraq’s health minister told The Associated Press that a girl and woman died and more than 750 people were affected.

The food was provided by a non-governmental organisation.

Authorities have launched a formal investigation into the incident, officials said.

The Kurdish news agency Rudaw, citing Erbil’s mayor, said the owner of the restaurant that made the food had been arrested.

The camp is located in al-Khazer on the road linking Mosul and Erbil and houses those displaced due to the ongoing offensive to retake Mosul from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS).

According to the UN refugee agency, more than 6,000 people currently live inside the camp.

A US-backed military operation to retake ISIL’s last three remaining enclaves outside Mosul’s Old City began last month – the latest push in a major operation that began in October.

Aid groups have repeatedly expressed their concerns over the safety of hundreds of thousands of civilians who have been forced to flee and are at risk of being caught in the crossfire.

Almost 10,000 people fled from Mosul’s northwest and the Old City every day during the last week of May, the UN said.

More than 750,000 people have been displaced from the city since October.

Mallya to appear for extradition hearing in UK court today

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Vijay Mallya

London: Embattled Indian tycoon Vijay Mallya, who is wanted in India on loan defaults to several banks, is set to appear today before Westminster Magistrates’ Court here for his extradition case hearing.

The 61-year-old former chief of erstwhile Kingfisher airlines has been out on bail since his arrest in April and will today find out the timetable to be set by the judge to hear the arguments for and against his extradition in what is referred to as a “case management hearing”.

“When the case returns to court, the District Judge is likely to set down a timetable for the service of any evidence to be submitted by either side in the proceedings, and list a date for a final hearing.

“There might be a few more hearings in this case in the coming months to deal with case management or any issues that arise, before the final hearing takes place, at which the full arguments from both sides in this case will be heard by the District Judge,” explained Jasvinder Nakhwal, partner at Peters and Peters Solicitors LLP and member of the UK’s Extradition Lawyers Association.

Britain’s Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), which will be arguing on behalf of the Indian authorities, had met a joint team of Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials in London last month to thrash out details of the case.

“Our aim is to build a strong, infallible case and these meetings will help resolve issues across the table. The CPS will be arguing based on documents provided by CBI and ED, therefore a joint team is here to address queries they may have,” official sources had said after the meeting in May.

Last week, Mallya was welcomed with chants of “chor, chor” by Indian cricket fans as he arrived to watch the India vs South Africa Champions Trophy match at The Oval cricket ground in London.

Earlier, he had caused a stir by his attendance of the India vs Pakistan match in Birmingham after which he had declared on Twitter that he would be attending all India matches in the ongoing ICC Champions Trophy.

Mallya, who is wanted in India for Kingfisher Airlines’ default on loans worth nearly Rs 9,000 crores, has been in the UK since March 2016 and was arrested by Scotland Yard on an extradition warrant on April 18.

He had attended a central London police station for his arrest and was released on conditional bail a few hours later after providing a bail bond worth 650,000 pounds, assuring the court of abiding by all conditions associated with extradition proceedings, such as the surrender of his passport and a ban on him possessing any travel documents.

An initial case management hearing date of May 17 had been postponed to June 13.

If the District Judge rules in favour of extradition at the end of the trial, the UK home secretary must order Mallya’s extradition within two months of the appropriate day. However, the case can go through a series of appeals before arriving at a conclusion.

India and the UK have an Extradition Treaty, signed in 1992, but so far only one extradition has taken place under the arrangement – Samirbhai Vinubhai Patel, who was sent back to India last October to face trial in connection with his involvement in the post-Godhra riots of 2002.

However, unlike Mallya, he had submitted to the extradition order without legal challenge.

(Agencies)

CT 2017: Pakistan ride on captain Sarfraz’s superb show to beat Sri Lanka

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Pakistan

Cardiff: Pakistan rode on skipper Sarfraz Ahmed’s unconquered 61 to recover from a middle-order collapse and pull off a three-wicket victory over Sri Lanka in a virtual quarter-final Group B ICC Champions Trophy clash at Sophia Gardens here on Monday to qualify for the semifinals.

Chasing 237 for a triumph, fast bowler Mohammad Amir (28 not out) showed great resolve to stitch together an unbeaten 75-run stand with Sarfraz for the eighth wicket to help his side register the win in a see-saw battle. At one point, Sri Lanka had their rivals on the mat at 162/7 but had poor fielding and dropped chances to blame for their loss.

Pakistan, which chased the target in 44.5 overs, got off to a rollicking start riding young southpaw Fakhar Zaman’s quickfire 36-ball 50 but Nuwam Pradeep (3/60) put a spanner on his works by getting him out just when he was looking very good.

The opening pair between ZamanAand Azhar Ali stitched together a 74-run partnership.

Ali’s dogged (34; 50b; 2×4 1×6) came to a premature end also after Babar Azam (10; 18b; 1×4) and Mohammad Hafeez (1) failed to contribute.

Pakistan lost the middle order in a hurry with seasoned campaigner Shoaib Malik (11; 20b 1×4 0x6), Imad Wasim (4) and Fahim Ashraf (15; 15b; 1×4, 1×6) not lasting long.

It was down to Sarfraz to lead from the front and the 30-year old made the most of two reprieves to steer Pakistan over the line alongwith important contribution from Amir.

Sarfraz was dropped twice by Thisara Perera and substitute Seekkuge Prasanna on 38 and 40 respectively, bith times off Lasith Malinga’s bowling.

(IANS)

MP: Hardik Patel arrested on way to Mandsaur to meet farmers

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Hardik Patel

Neemuch: Quota stir leader Hardik Patel was today arrested in Neemuch district of Madhya Pradesh when he was heading to Mandsaur to meet the kin of the farmers killed in police firing last week.

Patel was arrested from Nayagaon in Neemuch to prevent the commission of cognisable offences, City Superintendent of Police Abhishek Diwan said.

The Patidar Andolan leader was accompanied by Janata Dal (U) leader Akhilesh Katiyar, who was also placed under arrest. The two were, however, released on bail later and transported out of Madhya Pradesh in police vehicles, Diwan said.

Patel was picked up on his way to Mandsaur to express solidarity with distressed farmers and meet the kin of those killed in police firing during the agrarian unrest on the issue of loan waiver and several other demands.

Lashing out on authorities after his arrest, Patel said, “I am not a terrorist. I have not come from Lahore. I am an Indian citizen and have the right to go anywhere in the country.”

He also criticised the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre and said that 50 crore farmers have come together against the saffron party.

The farmers’ protest in Madhya Pradesh, which began on June 1, took a violent turn on June 6, when five of them were killed in police firing at Mandsaur.

Subsequently, the farmers’ protest witnessed bandh and arson as the agitation spread to other districts of western Madhya Pradesh including Neemuch, Dhar, Ratlam and Jhabua.

Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had launched an indefinite fast in Bhopal on Saturday with an appeal for peace and met farmer leaders.

However, he ended his fast on Sunday saying peace has returned to the state. Before ending the fast, he had assured people that those involved in the deaths of farmers in Mandsaur would be punished severely.

A high-voltage political drama was also witnessed on June 8, when Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi was detained on his way to Mandsaur to meet the family members of the farmers killed in police firing.

(PTI)

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