Uttar Pradesh Lakhimpur Kheri: Top Court Asks State Govt. to Submit Status Report

In response to a petition calling for action in the killing of farmers in Uttar Pradesh's Lakhimpur Kheri, the Supreme Court today asked the state government to disclose how many people had been arrested by tomorrow.

The court ordered the government to submit a status report tomorrow detailing the actions taken and the eight people killed during a protest against Union Minister Ajay Mishra's visit.

The Uttar Pradesh government announced today that a single-member Commission of Enquiry, headed by retired High Court Judge Pradeep Kumar Srivastava, will investigate Sunday's violence in the Lakhimpur Kheri area, which resulted in the deaths of eight people, including four farmers.

The violence in Uttar Pradesh's Lakhimpur Kheri, which killed eight people, including four farmers, and sparked a major political spat over the alleged involvement of a union minister's son, was heard today by a Supreme Court bench led by Chief Justice NV Ramana.

The court has decided to hear the case in light of a rising outcry over the Uttar Pradesh police's handling of the investigation, media reports, and a letter written by two state lawyers to the Chief Justice. The letter had called for a CBI probe under the supervision of the Supreme Court.

Meanwhile, BJP MP Varun Gandhi today demanded "accountability for the innocent blood of farmers" as he tweeted a longer and higher-quality video of what happened earlier this week in UP's Lakhimpur Kheri, when a black SUV (confirmed by Union Minister Ajay Mishra as belonging to his family) ploughed through a group of farmers holding a peaceful protest.

Farmers have vowed to escalate their months-long protest against agricultural liberalisation, as tensions rise following the deaths of eight people in clashes between protesters and supporters of the ruling party on Sunday.

According to protest leaders, four of the eight were murdered when a car driven by Union Minister of State for Home Ajay Mishra's son Ashish collided with protestors in Uttar Pradesh state.

Despite being identified in a police complaint, he was yet to be arrested.