The Hindu : National : Gujjars capture railway track

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Tuesday, Dec 21, 2010
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National

Gujjars capture railway track

Sunny Sebastian

Gehlot appeals for peace

Protestors are led by Kirori Singh Bainsla
Chief Minister rushes back from Delhi
from Delhi

JAIPUR: The latest round of agitation over quota by the Gujjar community appears to be heading for a flashpoint much earlier than it was expected with a group of about 900 men on Monday evening capturing the rail tracks at Pilukapura Choksi in Bharatpur district.

The act, by the group led by Gujjar leader Kirori Singh Bainsla, has sent shock waves across the State -- among the public and the authorities alike. Pilukapura, the theatre of the previous bloody agitation by Col. Bainsla -- who was then demanding Scheduled Tribe status for Gujjars -- is not far.

The other Gujjar faction, led by former Delhi MLA Ramvir Singh Bidhuri, was reportedly moving its men towards Pilukapura Choksi to join the squatters on the tracks.

When contacted, Mr. Bidhuri, who till the other day was demanding that the State Government exclude Col. Bainsla from talks, said: “When our people are sitting on the railway line on dharna how can we keep away?”

In fact Col. Bainsla was seemingly inclined to continue with the talks the Government had already initiated at the bureaucracy level.

However, in a dramatic style a group of Gujjars from his own camp forced the Colonel to move towards Pilukapura Choksi from Raseri where they had a meeting. By 6 p.m. the men were on the tracks.

Alerted by the cheeky act, Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, who was in Delhi in connection with the Congress plenary session, is rushing back to the State Capital.

His office has also announced cancellation of Mr. Gehlot's proposed trip to the South Rajasthan districts of Bhilwara, Udaipur, Chittorgarh and Rajsamand -- scheduled to start from Tuesday -- in the light of the new developments.

The Government is closely watching the developments with Home Minister Shanti Kumar Dhariwal and Chief Secretary S. Ahmed monitoring the situation “We are trying to find a solution through talks. The police are keeping watch,” Mr. Dhariwal said.

Mr. Gehlot in his appeal to the Gujjar community asked them not to take law into their hands.

“They should have faith in the judiciary and honour its verdict,” he said. Reminding the leaders of the Gujjar community of the previous agreement they had with the Government, Mr. Gehlot said the public welcomed it. The State Government, on its part, had complied with every point in the agreement including one per cent separate reservation to the Gujjars in the current recruitments, he claimed.

The Chief Minister's Office said the Government would be keeping aside four per cent of the posts till the High Court decides on five per cent reservation for the Gujjars and three other most backward communities.

“These communities stand to lose in no way in the current recruitment. Besides the one per cent, they get their due in the 21 per cent OBC quota as well. The appointments to the disputed four per cent posts would be done on back date once the court clears the quota,” the sources pointed out.

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