THE GURJAR reservation agitation turned violent on Sunday with protesters clashing with the police in Dholpur and setting at least three police vehicles on fire.
Demanding five per cent reservation, Gurjars led by Kirori Singh Bainsla laid siege to railway tracks in Sawai Madhopur from Friday evening. The agitators, including women, are spending the nights on the railway tracks in Malarna in Sawai Madhopur.
On Sunday, the agitation spread to various districts, including Dholpur, Bundi, Karauli, and Jhunjhunu, among others.
In Dholpur, protesters blocked the road and clashed with the police. Some miscreants also allegedly fired nearly a dozen rounds in the air, according to police. The mob, numbering a few hundred, pelted stones and also set three police vehicles, including a bus, on fire. However, there were no reports of any injuries.
Talks between Gurjars and a delegation of the government had remained inconclusive on Saturday. The government had sent IAS officer Niraj K Pawan, currently posted as Registrar, Cooperative Department, to hold talks. The government had also constituted a committee of three ministers to mediate with the agitators. The government representatives had invited Bainsla and others for talks in Jaipur or elsewhere, away from the tracks, but the agitators have so far refused.
Talking to reporters at Jaipur airport, Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot said, “Whatever happened in Dholpur today involved some anti-social elements. The local administration will see who all were involved and how and why such a thing happened. Bainsla ji himself has appealed to the people to maintain peace.”
