It was again a black Friday in the history of Rajasthan when 15 people comprising a policeman were killed in violent agitation between the police and the Gujjar community, who were lodging their protests against the state government for not awarding Schedule Tribe status yet. The prevailed tension continued in different areas of Rajasthan on Saturday.
The Gujjars in Bharatpur district disrupted the movement of trains by laying siege on rail track and denied to cremate their patron killed in police firing in Bayana until their demands were met.
Tensions are still prevailing high in Jaipur, Sawai Madhopur, Dausa, Kota, Bharatpur and Karauli districts. The state government in the districts bordering Rajasthan has declared high alert and the police have been ordered to keep tight vigil over any mishappening leading to violent activities.
The Army has been deployed in Bayana as precautionary measures keeping the Friday incident in mind. Trains passing through Bayana on the Delhi-Mumbai route have been cancelled.
Ten trains running through Bayana, on the Delhi-Mumbai route, have been called off. The road traffic connecting Jaipur to Agra too could not remain unaffected. On Jaipur-Delhi highway reports of blockade have also been noticed.
The retired colonel of the Indian Army and the Gujjar leader Kirori Singh Bainsla allegedly said the state government had swindled the Gujjar community. Before coming into power Vasudhara Raje (now the Chief Minister of Rajasthan) had promised their community to be awarded with ST status. But, now she has backed out of her promise. Bainsla leads the Gujjar Sangharsh Aarakshan Samiti, which had called for the ‘Rail Roko Andolan' (stop movement of trains).
“Gujjars should be given the ST status. The letter written by the Indian Government to the Rajasthan Government needs to be elaborated and recommendation letters need to be sent. We are resolved on the issue. No one will move from here till our demands are met. We have been duped all along. We have also been subjected to bullets,” Bainsla furiously said.
Giving details about the blood bath incident, Rajasthan Home Minister G C Kataria said police had to open the mouth of gun after a mob of Gujjars lynched one policeman and tried to damage railway tracks and government property.
“We have information of 13 deaths, including that of a policeman, in the violence so far. Senior officials including the Director General of Police, will visit the area later today and work out future strategy,” said Kataria.
About 200 Rapid Action Force (RAF), 300 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and 2,000 army personnel have been deployed in the violence-hit areas of Rajasthan.
Gujjars belonging to the Other Backward Classes (OBCs) had held protests all over Rajasthan from May 29 to June 4 last year, demanding that the community be included in the Scheduled Tribes category. The clash last year had taken death toll of at least 26 people. Last year too the incident had sparked on Friday.
The State government recently announced Rs 282-crore package for Gujjar community for their upliftment, but Friday violence witness that they would not put down their arms unless they did not meet their demands of getting ST status.
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Comments:
D.NarsingaRao(0-9849552877)
June 12, 2008 at 12:00 AM
The Union Government is pleased for inclusion of Medaras(Andhrapradesh) in ST list. Medaras of Andhra Pradesh, whose population is 15 lakh, have been included in the list of Backward Calsses. The people of this community are socially, economically very backward and eke out their livelihood often by collecting minor forest produce like bamboo. The traditional occupation of this community is bamboo basketry.
The Medara community in Karnataka have already been included in the Scheduled Tribes List. In Maharashtra, Madhyapradesh, Chattisgarh, Orissa, Uttarapradesh, Uttaranchal, Rajasthan, Bihar, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Meghalaya Synonyms of Medaras included in the Scheduled Castes List. (copy enclosed)
Anthropological Survey of India, Southern Regional Centre, Mysore have conducted a field study in 2002 on Medaras of Visakhapatnam, East Godavari and West Godavari Dists. According to their report, it is clear, that there is little substantial evidence which indicates that the Medara community posses the Tribal characteristics.
Parliamentary Assurances Committee (2002-03) in their Eighth Report, presented to Thirteenth Lok Sabha on 16th May 2002, strongly recommended for inclusion of Medara Community in ST list. (copy enclosed)
Despite of all these, this community has not yet been specified as Scheduled Tribe, and has deprived of the required benefits which have amounted to injustice.
And, hence they are requesting the Union Government for inclusion of Medara Community in the Scheduled Tribes as they are Culturally, Socially, Educationally, Economically backward people on par with the Basors/ Buruds in the rest of the country.