Gujjar agitation: Centre sending additional forces to vacate rail tracks, say sources

Jaipur: The Centre on Thursday sent additional forces to vacate rail tracks from the members of the Gujjar community, whose agitation for five percent quota in Rajasthan government jobs entered in its eighth day today.

According to Home Ministry sources, the Centre today dispatched 18 companies of the Border Security Force (BSF) to vacate rail tracks in areas most affected by the ongoing Gujjar agitation.

The move came hours after the Rajasthan High Court, taking cognizance of the ongoing 'rail roko' agitation by the Gujjar community members, rapped the state's Chief Secretary and the DGP for not taking preventive measures.

The Rajasthan High Court came down heavily on Chief Secretary CS Rajan and the DGP for failing to arrest the agitating members of the Gujjar community and ending their agitation.

The High Court also expressed concern over the deteriorating law and order situation across the state and the huge losses being caused to the Railways and the state exchequer by the Gujjars' agitation over their demand for 5 percent reservation in government jobs.

The high court asked the administration about the steps taken to maintain peace in Rajasthan and to calm the Gujjar agitation, Laxmikant, public prosecutor, told reporters.

The matter will be held tomorrow.

An affidavit and a progress report has to be filed by the state administration in this regard, the public prosecutor added on Gujjar agitation.

Gujjars have been blocking rail tracks and roads in three districts for a week now to press for five percent quota in government jobs. They have also refused to vacate the Delhi-Mumbai railway tracks and highways despite the High Court directive.

Meanwhile, Gujjar leaders will meet top officials of the Rajasthan government for another round of talks today to resolve the deadlock.

The Rajasthan government yesterday expressed its inability to accord five percent quota to Gujjars in jobs, suggesting that any such move will have adverse consequences on social harmony in the state even as the agitators continued with their protest.

"In principle, we expressed the government's inability to make any change in the current reservation arrangements in view of social harmony.

"The Gujjar delegates said they will discuss it with their people and get back to us soon," Health Minister Rajendra Rathore told reporters after a meeting with a Gujjar delegation.

He hoped that a final round of talks would happen after the Gujjar leaders discuss the matter with their community members. After the meeting, the Gujjar delegation expressed dissatisfaction with the government's efforts.

"The government gave us a draft highlighting the efforts it had made in the past to ensure reservation for the community but we are not satisfied with that. It expressed inability to accord us five per cent reservation in jobs as it may disturb the social harmony," said Himmat Singh, spokesperson of Gujjar Arakshan Sangharh Samiti.

Both sides had detailed discussions Tuesday night over the issue though there was no conclusive result and the Gujjar delegation and a three-minister panel met again yesterday at the secretariat here for another round of the talks.

On behalf of the government, a committee comprising Health minister Rajendra Rathore, Social Justice minister Arun Chaturvedi and Food minister Hem Singh Bhadana is having dialogues with the 13-member Gunjjar delegation.

Meanwhile, the Delhi-Mumbai rail track in Bharatpur, Agra-Jaipur national highway in Dausa and a state highway in Sawaimadhopur remained blocked today on the seventh day of the agitation.

The agitating Gujjars led by Bainsla held the first round of talks in Bayana of Bharatpur town on Saturday last week which was inconclusive and the second meeting between the two sides was held Tuesday night in Jaipur.

Railways has suffered losses of about Rs 100 crore due to the ongoing Gujjar agitation which has forced cancellation and diversion of as many as 326 Mail and Express trains on Kota-Mathura route so far.

Besides, there have been cancellations of about 1.9 lakh tickets since May 21 on IRCTC website, causing a huge logjam for customers to access the site.

The Kota-Mathura route bears the major traffic between South and North and North and West and it has been cut off due to the agitation.