Protests over graft rack India
Source: Agencies |
August 27, 2012, Monday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
INDIAN police detained scores of anti-corruption activists who tried to march yesterday to the homes of top political leaders to protest a scandal over the government's sale of coal fields without competitive bidding.
Hundreds of activists lay down on the road outside the homes of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and other leaders in central New Delhi as police held them back with security barricades. They later broke through police cordons at many places, and police responded with tear gas and water cannons.
Officers dragged protesters to buses parked near the prime minister's house and took them to police stations. Police also used bamboo batons to beat back protesters who had climbed over a barricade near the prime minister's office.
Roads in the heart of the capital were closed to traffic.
Police said the detained activists would be held for a few hours. The protesters, members of India Against Corruption, a group led by prominent anti-corruption activist Anna Hazare, have said they would blockade the homes of leaders of both the ruling Congress party and the main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party because they blame both parties for India's endemic corruption.
Singh's government has been hit by a slew of corruption accusations, adding to public anger over its failure to push through much-needed economic reforms. Auditors said the sale of coal fields to private companies without competitive bidding led to windfall profits of $34 billion for the companies.
Hundreds of activists lay down on the road outside the homes of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and other leaders in central New Delhi as police held them back with security barricades. They later broke through police cordons at many places, and police responded with tear gas and water cannons.
Officers dragged protesters to buses parked near the prime minister's house and took them to police stations. Police also used bamboo batons to beat back protesters who had climbed over a barricade near the prime minister's office.
Roads in the heart of the capital were closed to traffic.
Police said the detained activists would be held for a few hours. The protesters, members of India Against Corruption, a group led by prominent anti-corruption activist Anna Hazare, have said they would blockade the homes of leaders of both the ruling Congress party and the main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party because they blame both parties for India's endemic corruption.
Singh's government has been hit by a slew of corruption accusations, adding to public anger over its failure to push through much-needed economic reforms. Auditors said the sale of coal fields to private companies without competitive bidding led to windfall profits of $34 billion for the companies.
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