Jats call off stir after written assurance from govt on quota
BHARATPUR: Jat leaders in Bharatpur called off their agitation on Saturday after the state government gave a written assurance to implement the reservation process. The talks were held at the inspector general of police (IG) office in Bharatpur.
Governing secretary of social justice and empowerment department B L Jatavat held talks with Jat leaders and also submitted a letter on behalf of the government.
Convenor of Bharatpur Dholpur Jat Aarakshan Sangharsh Samiti, Nem Singh, and other members visited different spots to ensure that the rail and road blockades were lifted in the district.
After consent over quota demand, both sides held a press conference to declare that the agitation was over. They urged the protestors to open all blocked rail and road routes after the government accepted their demands.
“We are satisfied with the response of the state government. The agitation has been called off after the government assured us that it would take up the OBC commission’s report in the next cabinet meeting,” Singh said.
Congress leader from Kumher-Deeg Vishvendra Singh said, “We don’t believe in any minister’s assurance over quota, but we believe the senior officials, who have given us a timeline to implement quota process.”
“We have got a written statement from the state government that they will discuss the report of the Commission that was set up by the state government to survey the socio-economic status of the Jat community in Bharatpur and Dholpur districts in the first of the Cabinet meetings,” Singh, who is a prominent Jat leader and former ruler of Bharatpur, said.
BL Jatavat, governing secretary of the social justice and empowerment department said that the department has received a 600-page survey report of OBC commission on June 22, which will be studied and put up in the upcoming cabinet meeting for implementation.
Divisional commissioner of Bharatpur Subir Kumar, district collector Narendra Kumar Gupta, former chairman of Secondary Education Board of Rajasthan Subhash Garg and Congress MLA from Weir, Bhajanlal Jatav also participated in the talks.
However, it was not immediately clear when the North Western Railway, which had announced the cancellation of 13 trains on Saturday morning, will be able to resume normal services.
Bharatpur railway station superintendent B K Singhal said all rail routes were being examined before the trains could be permitted to run. The railway traffic will be started by evening after railways team inspects the track.
On Friday, the protesters had resorted to road and train blockades in some places, mainly between Bharatpur to Mathura, Jaipur and Agra and roads connecting various towns in the district.
Many trains in Jaipur, Agra and Mathura sectors were cancelled while train traffic between the important Delhi-Mumbai sector was affected. Roads from Bharatpur to Delhi, Deeg, Alwar, Agra and Mathura were also blocked.
The Jat members held a mahapanchayat and began the stir on Thursday by blocking railway tracks demanding reservation for the community members of DholpurandBharatpurdistricts.