Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi left for violence-hit Mandsaur district in Madhya Pradesh on Thursday morning, reported ANI. He had said that he would meet the families of those who were killed during the ongoing farmers’ protest. Meanwhile, the Mandsaur superintendent of police was removed from his post and the district collector, Swatantra Kumar Singh, was transferred. Om Prakash Srivastava was appointed the new collector of Mandsaur, ANI reported.

The state government, however, has denied permission for anyone to visit the troubled area. Accusing Gandhi of being “publicity hungry”, Union minister Narendra Singh Tomar said he should not be visiting Mandsaur until the situation stabilises, NDTV reported.

Last month, the Congress scion was denied permission to visit riot-hit Saharanpur district in Uttar Pradesh, which was on boil following caste clashes that left two dead and many injured. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had barred all political leaders to visit the district as long as the situation was volatile.

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who had announced compensation for the families of victims, announced more sops for the farmers, reported The Indian Express. The government agreed for the loan settlement scheme for defaulters, and also announced setting up of a commission to fix a formula to ensure fair price for crops. He gave orders to immediately constitute a Rs 1,000-crore price stabilisation fund.

However, the situation in Mandsaur continues to be tense. Bus and train services have been disrupted by the ongoing protests. Trains from Madhya Pradesh to Rajasthan had to be cancelled or diverted, an official told PTI. Trains passing through the Ratlam Railway Division in MP were the worst affected, said the North-West Railways spokesperson.

Mobile and internet services continued to remain suspended in Mandsaur, Ratlam and Neemuch districts. Meanwhile, prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the CrPC are still in place in Mandsaur, DNA reported.

On Wednesday, the protesting farmers had blocked the highway with the bodies of those killed on Tuesday. The administration had to convince them to cremate the bodies. Farmers also torched a number of vehicles, local warehouse and a factory in and around Mandsaur. Around 1,100 anti-riots police personnel were deployed in the region by the Centre.