Aakrosh Rally in Barmer today
We will protest in a peaceful manner. We will have no option but to adopt violence if we don’t get justice and the government will responsible for it.
PRAVEEN SINGH AAGORE, a Rajput leader
state Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government’s efforts to mollify the Rajput community are not yielding desired results. Rather than bringing the Rajputs into the BJP fold, the efforts seem to be making the community even more resentful. The most recent reason for friction was the security arrangements during chief minister Vasundhara Raje’s ‘Rajasthan Gaurav Yatra’ in Barmer.
Praveen Singh Aagore, a Rajput leader, said that the community will organise an ‘Aakrosh Rally’ on Wednesday and will protest the government’s antipeople policies. “We will protest in a peaceful manner. We will have no option but to adopt violence if we don’t get justice and the government will responsible for it,” warned Aagore.
Eight persons, including four Rajputs, were arrested on September 1 for showing black flags during Raje’s public meeting in Barmer. The Rajput community claimed that initially these people were arrested under section 151 of Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC ) — knowingly joining or continuing in any assembly of five or more persons likely to cause a disturbance of public peace —but were later arrested under other sections. Aagore said that after the arrests, the eight were produced before a local magistrate who granted them bail. However, the next day they were arrested again under sections such as 332 (voluntarily causing hurt), 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of duty) and 143 (member of an unlawful assembly).
“The youth were protesting in a democratic manner by showing black flags. They neither stopped nor assaulted any public servant. Raje’s meeting in Barmer was a political meeting and not a government programme. How can the police arrest people for deterring public servants from discharging duty,” said Aagore. He alleged that these youths were arrested only because during the last general election differences had emerged with the BJP when veteran leader Jaswant Singh contested as an independent from Barmer. “Since the Rajputs have been ignored, they were left with no option but to protest the government’s anti-people policies,” Aagore said.
Another Rajput leader, Swaroop Singh Rathore, whose expulsion from BJP has recently revoked, said that this is the first time he has seen when people who have protested at a political meeting have been arrested under such sections. “Earlier, when such things happened, people were detained for some time and later released. It seems that government is trying to suppress the protest,” said Rathore.
Reacting on the issue, Aaduram Meghwal, former district president of BJP and convener of ‘Rajasthan Gaurav Yatra’ in Barmer, said that the police have taken action against those who have taken the law into their hands.
“The government and party have nothing to do with this matter. I am shocked how some people are connecting an unlawful activity with a particular caste. Those who want to protest, can do so bit in a peaceful manner. There is nothing wrong in taking action against those who are disturbing the law and order situation and taking the law into their hands,” he said.
Another reason for worry for the BJP is the Swabhiman Sammelan called by its own legislator, Manvendra Singh, on September 22. The event is being seen as an effort by Singh, son of former external affairs minister and BJP veteran Jaswant Singh, to show his strength among the Rajputs.
Manvendra Singh’s wife Chitra Singha and team Manvendra will join the Aakrosh Rally. Aagore said that apart from Chitra Singh, Swaroop Singh Rathore, Tejdan Charan, Tejdan Sata, Ram Singh Bothiya, Azad Singh Shivkar, Captain Heer Singh Bhati and many other will take part in the rally.
: An important urban assembly area of western Rajasthan, Sardarpura, was wrested by the Congress in the past four assembly elections, with the winning candidate being Ashok Gehlot.
Gehlot who is the general secretary of All India Congress Committee and was the chief minister of Rajasthan twice, could possibly be the party’s CM candidate in the upcoming assembly elections as well. The Congress has not projected any CM face so far. Since Gehlot started contesting from the constituency, no other candidate has ever demanded a ticket.
The caste equation of Sardarpura assembly constituency helped Gehlot in the past four elections. It is a different matter that when Gehlot won the seat for the first time in the by-election after becoming the chief minister in 1999, he got record number of votes. But the margin of victory fell in the subsequent elections.
According to political observers, the majority of voters in Sardarpura belong to the Mali community, followed by Muslim and Rajput voters. Jats, other OBCs and general caste voters also influence the victory. They believe that Mali and Muslim vote banks play an effective role in the result.
It is challenging for the BJP to win this “safe seat” of the Congress that banks on Gehlot’s personal influence in the area. The BJP has fielded different candidates in the past four elections and is yet to announce its candidate for the upcoming elections.
The BJP’s candidate in the previous elections, Shambhu Singh Khetasar, says that the
JODHPUR In the past fourandahalf years, the BJP government ignored Jodhpur city, not just Sardarpura. Jodhpur was deprived of the smart city scheme due to being the hometown of the former CM. SAYEED ANSARI, Congress district president