Mandya, Oct. 31 -- Farmers staged a black flag protest against Karnataka Chief Minister DK Shivakumar in Mandya on Saturday, ahead of his arrival in the district, following which several protesters were taken into police custody.

The farmers, protesting under the banner of Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha, gathered near the Sir M Visvesvaraya statue in Mandya and raised demands for the protection of government schools, uniform and equal education, and fair prices for sugarcane. They had decided to show black flags to the Chief Minister during his visit.

Police tried to pacify the protesters. SP Shobharani attempted to convince the farmers, but the efforts failed. Subsequently, the protesting farmers, who were holding black flags, were take...