Ten different groups of statehood activists on Thursday marched towards Vidhan Sabha under the banner of Uttarakhand Rajya Andolankari Sanyukt Sangathan (URASS) in support of their eight demands. They demanded to meet with the Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat or his representative. A 10-member delegation of URASS was then taken to Vidhan Sabha where they met State minister for Higher Education, Dhan Singh Rawat and Dharmpur MLA Vinod Chamoli.
Earlier about 300 members of URASS from across the state participated in the protest march towards Vidhan Sabha, but they were stopped at Rispana barricading. After initial confrontation with the police force present there, they decided to sit on the road and started sloganeering against the government policies. The URASS members threatened to remain there till they were allowed to meet with government representative.
In their memorandum the statehood activists stated their eight demands. Blaming the state bureaucracy for failure to ensure punishment to the culprits of Rampur Tiraha incident, the statehood activists demanded justice for the martyrs. They also demanded a a Bill for providing 10 per cent reservation for statehood activists while also questioning the high court’s decision of cancelling reservation for Uttarakhand’s natives in Group C examination. They further demanded establishment of strong Lokayukta law to fight against corruption in the state and that Gairsain be declared permanent capital of Uttarakhand. They also protested against the relaxation given in sale and purchase of land in mountainous regions of Uttarakhand and demanded reformation in the land act. The protesters further sought reopening of Rajya Andolankari Samman Parishad. They also demanded proper delimitation, stating that increasing number of Assembly seats in plains is against the idea of Uttarakhand’s establishment as a separate mountain state.