Youth Congress workers gherao Majhauli SDM office in Sidhi; police use water cannon

The Youth Congress on Friday laid siege to the SDM office in Majhauli, Sidhi district, over two demands. More than 200 workers took part in the protest, led by district president Karun Singh.

Police had put up three layers of barricading near the office. When the protesters moved forward, a water cannon was used to stop them.

The first demand was to end the shortage of doctors in hospitals. Karun Singh said the health system in Majhauli was in a bad state. According to him, patients are not getting timely treatment because hospitals have too few doctors. He alleged that people are dying for lack of treatment, but no concrete steps are being taken to improve health facilities.

The second demand was to set up an examination centre at the college in Majhauli. Karun Singh said the exam centre is currently in Sidhi, and thousands of students have to travel about 50 km to reach it. He said that in the cold season students have to get up at 4 am to go and take their exams, which also puts their safety at risk.

Karun Singh warned that if both demands were not met, the Youth Congress would launch a more aggressive agitation in the coming days.

Station house officer Vishal Sharma said the workers tried to gherao the SDM office but police stopped them. A water cannon was used to disperse the crowd. He said there was no loss of life in the incident and no dispute.