Haryana Government on Thursday invited Jat leaders to discuss their demand for quotas in Government jobs and higher education, with just hours to go before they were scheduled to resume their agitation.
“We have been invited by the government for talks tomorrow at Chandigarh,” All India Jat Aarakshan Sanghursh Samiti President Yashpal Malik said.
“Our leaders will be meeting Haryana Chief Secretary and Director General of Police (DGP) tomorrow afternoon as per the government invitation,” he said. “Till then we will not resume our agitation,” he said, adding that “after meeting the top officials of Haryana next course of action will be taken.”
Various Jat organisations had on Monday threatened to resume their quota agitation, which rocked state last month and claimed 30 lives, if M.l. Khattar's Bharatiya Janata Party government does not meet their demand by March 17.
Malik demanded that state government must bring a Bill in the current Vidhan Sabha session to ensure reservation for Jats.
Malik said the Samiti will organize meetings on March 19 and 20 throughout the state and after that, meeting of units of Punjab, Haryana and Delhi will be held at Nangloi in Delhi on March 21 to discuss about their demands. Earlier, a state level meeting of representatives of the Samiti was held in Hissar Jat Dharamshala under the chairmanship of Malik.
Meanwhile, paramilitary forces and police were out in the sensitive districts and carrying out flag marches in various places as the 72-hour deadline given by the Jat organisations was coming to an end Thursday
The Centre has sent 80 companies (about 800 personnel) of paramilitary forces to the state for deployment in sensitive areas such as Rohtak and Jhajjar districts, which were the worst-affected during the first phase of the agitation last month.
“We have already got the paramilitary force. The police is on the alert and we are making all arrangements (to maintain law and order),” IGP, Rohtak Range, Sanjay Kumar said today.
He said additional police forces had also been arranged from within the state for deployment in the sensitive areas in and around Rohtak.
“We have made adequate police security arrangements. We have adequate force and we are deploying it accordingly,” he said. Asked about the situation in Rohtak, Jhajjar and some other areas worst hit by recent unrest, the IG said, “at present the situation is normal.”