Jat leaders on Sunday renewed their quota stir in Haryana which was restricted to small meetings in 15 districts amid tight security by the Haryana Government which had drawn flak over its handling of the Jat agitation in February. Road and railway traffic remained normal and no untoward incident was reported from anywhere in the State.
Jat leaders in Jassia village of Rohtak district, the epicentre of violence during the stir, held a havan as they started the second round of the agitation on a tepid note with influential Khap panchayats and some Jat factions distancing themselves from the protests.
All India Jat Aarakshan Sangharsh Samiti (AIJASS), which gave the call for the protest, pitched a tent along the Rohtak-Panipat highway just outside Jassia and also held dharnas in 15 of the State’s 21 districts.
In Hisar, members of the Jat community started an indefinite dharna at a stadium in village Mayyar away from railway tracks and national highway.
The Jat protesters are demanding quota under OBC category, withdrawal of cases against members during the previous stir, status of martyrs for those killed and jobs for their next of kin, and compensation for the injured.
The agitation this time was restricted to districts like Jhajjar, Sonipat, Rohtak, Panipat, Hisar, Fatehabad and Jind. Prohibitory orders were clamped at sensitive places in these districts and security forces conducted flag marches as the administration geared up to ensure that there is no repeat of earlier incidents when 30 people were killed, property worth hundreds of crores of rupees destroyed and key routes blocked by agitators.
A special round-the-clock control room was set up in Chandigarh to monitor the situation. This time, Chief Minister Manohar lal Khattar, senior officials including the Chief Secretary, the Home Secretary, the State DGP are keeping a close watch on the situation.
Haryana Home Secretary Ram Niwas said that the agitation remained peaceful and no untoward incident was reported from any part of the State. He added that the traffic was normal as neither any highway nor any railway line was blocked by the protesters.
Ram Niwas said that in many districts, no dharna was staged. However, at some places where the protesters sat on dharna, they submitted the memorandums to the Deputy Commissioner concerned and lifted the dharna.
While pointing out that some anti-social elements were trying to vitiate the peaceful atmosphere of the state, he also urged the people not to be misled by rumour mongers. The Government is maintaining vigil constantly and video recording was being done to identify those who would indulge in vitiating peaceful atmosphere of the state. Some people did try to add fuel to the fire on social media and cases have been registered against them, he added.
55 companies of paramilitary forces are stationed in the state to deal with the Jat agitation. Paramilitary forces and Haryana Police personnel were deployed at sensitive areas, including national and state highways and railway tracks to prevent blockade. The administration in Sonipat and Rohtak districts had banned all internet services.
Notably, Haryana saw the worst violence in its five decades of existence in February during the Jat
agitation for reservation. As many as 30 persons were killed, more than 300 others injured and property worth crores was destroyed during the agitation. The State had remained paralysed for nearly 10 days.
After the Jat agitation, which paralysed normal life in Haryana and affected Delhi along with other neighbouring states, the State Government had brought in a law to provide reservation for Jats and five other communities under a newly carved Backward Classes (C) category.
However, the Punjab and Haryana High Court had stayed it, acting on a public interest litigation, after which some Jat groups announced the fresh stir.