Rajasthan: Gurjars launch agitation again over reservation, block railway tracks

Gurjars in Rajasthan have once again launched an agitation demanding reservation. The protesters blocked the Delhi-Mumbai Rail Track on Sunday, due to which many trains on this route had to be diverted.

Once again, the Gurjars of the state are agitating for reservation. They have once again reiterated their demand for 5 percent reservation from the government. For the past several years, the Gurjars in Rajasthan have been demanding reservation under the leadership of Colonel Bainsla and in the past, this movement has turned into violence several times.

The Gurjars lied down on the railway tracks and warned the government that they would not go off the tracks until their demands were met. Due to this, Indian Railways had to change the route of 16 trains running between Delhi and Mumbai. Many trains were diverted on the Jhansi-Bina-Nagda route.

A delegation of Gurjar leaders held talks with the state government on Saturday and both sides had agreed on 14 points. After the meeting, Gurjar leader Himmat Singh had said that the talks were positive, society would be satisfied with this and there would be no need for agitation. However, Colonel Kirori Singh Bainsla did not attend the meeting.

On the other hand, Gurjar leader Vijay Bainsla on Sunday said that the agitation for reservation will continue till their demands are met.

"We will continue our agitation till our demands are met and an order regarding it is issued by the government. We will not entertain anything less than that," Bainsla said.

The community has been divided into two factions. One faction, the Gurjar Reservation Committee led by Himmat Singh Gurjar has agreed with the Rajasthan government's cabinet sub-committee on 14 points following talks on Saturday while the other faction led by Gurjar leader Vijay Bainsla is continuing with the protests.

Rajasthan government on October 26, 2018, passed a bill that increased the Other Backward Classes (OBC) quota from 21 per cent to 26 per cent. In December 2018, the Rajasthan government also approved one per cent reservation for Gurjars and four Other Backward Castes (OBCs).

These communities are getting one per cent separate reservation under the legal limit of 50 per cent reservation meant for the most-backward category in addition to OBC reservation.