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Gujjars to boycott polls

JAIPUR: The Gujjar community leaders, frustrated over “unsupportive” stand of the BJP-led Government in Rajasthan on their demand for Scheduled Tribe status, are now talking in terms of taking “revenge” on the party in the next elections by boycotting it.

While they are demanding that other political parties also make their stand clear on the issue, the BJP has seemingly become the clear target.

The leaders, who met here under the leadership of Kirori Singh Bainsla on Monday amid intense politicking among its various regional satraps for domination, passed a resolution which called out to the community to “teach a lesson” to the BJP which “ditched” Gujjars after promising them ST status.

“We will boycott the BJP all over the country in the next elections. The impact would be known in areas where the Gujjars are present in sizeable numbers,” said Col. Bainsla, often accused by his detractors for being too soft on the BJP Government. “We will take nothing less than the ST status,” he asserted.

Monday’s meeting, coming a day after an announcement by the dismissed BJP MLAs Prahlad Gunjal and Atar Singh Bhadana that a “Mahapadav” (siege) would be laid in Jaipur on March 10 to press for the demand, had its own bickering with a section of the leaders asking why should the BJP be singled out when the Congress too was not so forthcoming. However the anti-Government groups finally prevailed.

The meeting also decided to start a “Jan jagran abhiyan” (public contact campaign), which would last till the next elections.

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