Govt relents, to help free jailed leaders
STATE ON BACK FOOT Govt meets Patel community leaders after violence continues, state home minister’s house set ablaze in Mehsana
AHMEDABAD: Gujarat minister of state for home Rajnikant Patel once again bore the brunt of Patidar violence as his house in Mehsana was set ablaze by agitators in a possible reaction to the poor response evoked by the state-wide bandh on Monday.
As the epicenter of the quota movement, Mehsana, was on the boil, the government simultaneously held a meeting with senior Patel community leaders in Gandhinagar to discuss a charter of 27 demands submitted by them and assured them of early release of jailed protesters.
“We will try to facilitate the release of Patidar agitators. We will also try to resolve the reservation through dialogue,” said government spokesperson and health minister Nitin Patel. The assurance assumes significance given Sunday’s Jail Bharo Aandolan which was primarily aimed at immediate release of PAAS leader Hardik Patel and others.
Earlier in the day, the bandh called by Sardar Patel Group (SPG) and PAAS to protest against police lathicharge on Patidars in Mehsana on Sunday failed to give desired results even as the curfew in the town was lifted on Monday.
The poor response did not go down well with the agitators and they set ablaze Rajnikant’s house near Avsar party plot where Patidars had gathered on Sunday before marching towards Mehsana sub-jail to court arrest. The minister’s house was also set on fire by protesters in August last year when the state had witnessed riots at a much larger scale.
Although examinations in some educational institutions, including the Hem Chandra University, were postponed, the bandh largely failed to disrupt the state’s academic scenario. Most business establishments and commercial ventures continued to function even in Patel-dominated pockets of Gujarat such as Surat, Mehsana, Ahmedabad and Rajkot.
However, transport services across the state were crippled after the government stopped buses from plying on several routes — especially those passing through Patidar-dominated areas. Mobile internet services also remained suspended in Ahmedabad, Mehsana, Surat and Rajkot. The ban was lifted in Vadodara.
Nitin Patel blamed Congress supporters for instigating Patidar youths for the Sunday violence that left 30 people injured, including SPG chief Lalji Patel.
The clash had taken place between Patidars and police when agitators demanded immediate release of their 22-year-old leader Hardik Patel during Jail Bharo Andoland. Hardik has been lodged in Lajpore Central Jail in Surat under sedition charges since October last year.
Meanwhile, Patidar leader Lalji Patel was put under police watch at a Mehsana hospital, where he is being treated for head injury.
He and 50 others have been booked for conspiracy and attempt to murder. The police is likely to arrest him once he is discharged from the hospital. The case has been registered in connection with an attack on a mamlatdar on Sunday.
A BANDH, HOWEVER, ELICITED POOR RESPONSE AND MOST BUSINESSES EVEN IN PATEL-DOMINATED POCKETS STAYED OPEN
ABOUT PATELS
The Patedars or Patels of Gujarat constitute barely 15% of the state’s population as per the 1931 caste census. Two major sub-castes of the Patels are the Kadvas and Leuvas. A third, much smaller group, the Anjanas, practiced the barter system and were considered socially backward and eligible for the OBC status. So last year while they benefited from the state’s recruitment drive for permanent teaching posts, the police force and other government departments, Kadva and Leuva Patels were left out of the selection process. This triggered the first protests across North Gujarat where the Anjanas are concentrated Patel is a trade name and previous caste of landowners, farmers and village leaders. Gujarati Patels were historically villagebased landowners and farmer s. The Patidar community benefited from British Land Reforms during the 19th century and their wealth increased accordingly. They want inclusion in OBC category for reservation. The Patidars claim that they’ve received ‘no benefits since India became independent’ and are seeking reservations for the community SC ruling says reservations cannot cross the 50% mark, which Gujarat has already reached. That’s why the demand by the Patels to be made beneficiaries of the 27% OBC quota has pitted them against the 146 groups which are already on the backward list and includes PM’s community, the Ghanchis, who acquired OBC status as late as 1999.