A Week Of Protest In New Delhi And Riots In Haryana

By M.Santhiran NEW DELHI, Feb 22 (Bernama) -- The violent upheaval witnessed by the state of Haryana due to the demands of the Jat community and the strong protest in New Delhi over how a student leader was treated made life difficult for the people of both places. What started as a demand for better quota agitation for the Jat Community, within days escalated into violent protest that spread to as far as New Delhi. The rioting and looting that entered into its ninth day on Monday has cut off Haryana from other parts of India for nearly a week now, with the authorities having a tough time in bringing the situation under control. As of Monday the death toll due to the uprising in Haryana has risen to 19. The Jat community make up around 82 million of India's more than 1.3 billion population and they are concentrated in Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Paradesh, Delhi and other areas in the northern belt. Though the Jats are considered economically and politically well off compared with many other minorities, since the 1990s they have been demanding that they be included as OBC (other backward class). OBC is a collective term to classify groups that are socially and educationally disadvantaged. By being in the OBC, the Jats stand to benefit up to 27 per cent in reservation in government jobs and places in educational institutions. SCHOOLS CLOSED WITH DELHI FACES WATER CRISIS With situation worsening over the last 24 hours in Haryana, despite of the central government deploying additional 10,000 troops, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal ordered schools closed on Monday (today) as a precaution. Jat protesters had cut water supply to Delhi from Haryana prompting Kejriwal to order water rationing as the state relies on Haryana for 80 percent of its water supply. Delhiites are already experiencing water shortage with some residents rushing to the shops to buy pails and containers to store water. I too bought three crates of drinking water as a precaution, though I had never experienced water cuts for the last one year. It was reported that in some areas shops had run out of bottled water and their prices have sky rocketed. Times of India on Sunday reported that BJP had announced that a bill for giving OBC status for the Jats would be brought in the coming Haryana assembly session. It further said that the Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government "buckled under pressure" on the Haryana issue, what more with his BJP (BJP) ruling the state. Critics and opposition politicians lashed out against Modi's failure in sending a strong message against the protesters because it might encourage other communities to hold the government for ransom on the same grounds. PROTESTS CAUSE TRAFIC GIRDLOCK IN DELHI In the same week Delhites not only had endure the spillover effects from the Jat community's uprising but also with the street protests following the arrest of Jawarlal Nehru University (JNU) student leader Kanhaiya Kumar. Kanhaiya was arrested under the Seditious Act for allegedly making anti-national slogans in JNU. Delhities witnessed the worst traffic gridlock especially in the city centre when four groups of people took to the streets. Students and lecturers protested on the high handedness employed by the police in detaining Kanhaiya. Things turned more dramatic when a group of lawyers and army veterans attacked JNU students and journalists, when Kanhaiya was brought to the court. Following this, hundreds of journalists took to the streets demanding action against those involved in beating up journalists in the court complex in the presence of the police. Kanhaiya was attacked twice by the same group of lawyers in two separate incidents with the police failing to stop the attack, with one of the incident occurring right in the court room. The failure of police to protect Kanhaiya from being attacked in court room even after directive from Supreme Court raised several questions on law and order. The students also questioned on the raids by Delhi police on JNU campus which never happened before in the history of Indian education institution. MIGHT HAVE IMPACT ON MODI'S EFFORTS With Modi expected to announce further incentives for foreign investors, serious questions remains whether India could be next the growth centre of the world's economy following the Haryana episode. The Haryana riots forced one of the major automobile manufacturer Maruti Suzuki, which produced 5,000 cars per day, to close its plant temporarily mainly due to shortage of components. A former senior police officer and BJP politician Kiran Bedi defended police action against the JNU students and journalists. She blamed on inaccurate reporting putting the Delhi police in difficult situation. Many Delhiites and academicians I spoke to for the last one week agreed that Indians still have a long way to go in uniting under single identity beyond caste, ethnic and religious lines. -- BERNAMA