Gujjars’ protest on job quota hits Delhi-Mumbai train services (Second Lead)

BAYANA - Train services between Delhi and Mumbai were hit Tuesday as Gujjars, demanding reservation for the community in government jobs, laid siege to a railway track near Bayana in Bharatpur district of Rajasthan and threatened to intensify their stir.

We would intensify our stir and would spread it all over the state if our demand is not met,” said Bhim Singh, a Gujjar leader and a member of the Gujjar Arakshan Sangharsh Samiti which is spearheading the agitation.

Over 15,000 Gujjars began their agitation Monday. They held demonstrations in Bhilwara, Ajmer and others parts of the state.

The agitators have also blocked the roads between Bayana-Hindon and Hindon-Bharatpur, forcing Rajasthan roadways to cancel some of its buses plying on these routes.

Gujjars under the leadership of Colonel K.S. Bainsla, convener of the samiti, after holding a Mahapanchayat in Bayana, about 150 km from the state capital Jaipur, Monday decided on the rail blockade.

Following the decision, hundreds of protesters squatted on the rail tracks in Piloo Ka Pura forcing the railway to divert or cancel a few of its trains.

After considering the situation, we have stopped train movement in the area due to security reasons, a senior railway official told IANS.

He said the worst affected were the services on the Delhi-Mumbai route with close to 22 trains being affected. A couple of trains have also been cancelled, he added.

One passenger train running between the Jaipur-Bayana sector has been terminated at Gangapur, well before its final destination, he added.

Hundreds of passengers were stranded Tuesday as the movement of trains between Mathura in Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan’s Bharatpur was affected.

The protesters have been sitting on the railway track near Piloo ka Pura near Bharatpur and trains had to be diverted. The passengers were stranded in Mathura, Agra and Bharatpur, a rail official said.

Half a dozen trains, including the Rajdhani Express, were Monday evening diverted through Agra Cantonment railway station to avoid Bharatpur. Reports also said the tracks were damaged by the protesters.

Bainsla said the community would continue the protest till their demand on reservation is met.

We will continue to hold a peaceful protest across the state till the state government fulfils our demands for five percent reservation, withdrawal of cases against Gujjar agitators and their release from jail, Bainsla said.

Flaying the state government, he said the government has been dilly-dallying over the issue for too long.

We strongly criticise Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot’s recent announcement that the government will go ahead with recruitment before the quota issue for Gujjars is settled, Bainsla said.

The state government has warned that strong action would be taken against people who damage government property. Late at night, Gehlot reviewed the situation with the director general of police, the chief secretary and the home minister.

The government appealed to the Gujjar community to resolve the issue through talks. Vishwendra Singh, former MP from Bharatpur and erstwhile king of Bharatpur, earlier in the day met Bainsla and requested him to solve the problem by holding talks.

The government clarified that 1 percent reservation to the community under special backward class category has already been given. The remaining 4 percent reservation, as demanded by the agitators, will also be given after the Rajasthan High Court’s decision in the case.

The case will come up for hearing in court Wednesday.

In July 2009, the Rajasthan government had announced five percent reservation for Gujjars and 14 percent for the economically backward classes taking the total reservations for various sections of society to 68 percent in the state.

The high court in October 2009 stayed the quota in jobs and educational institutions in the state for Gujjars and the economically backward classes as the reservation ceiling had exceeded the cap of 50 percent.

Gujjars demanding reservation for better educational and job prospects earlier between 2006 and 2008 staged violent protests in which many lives were lost.