Gujjar stir: No breakthrough in second round of talks

The Gujjar community members maintained that nothing short of 5% reservation within the legal limit of 50% would be acceptable to them

A breakthrough was awaited for resolving the Gujjar reservation issue as the second round of talks tonight between a delegation of the agitating leaders and a panel of three Rajasthan ministers failed to arrive at a conclusion.

The talks between the 13-member Gujjar delegation and the ministerial committee took place at the Secretariat here and lasted for nearly four hours.

The parleys will resume tomorrow morning as no conclusion was reached tonight, Himmat Singh, spokesperson of the Gujjar Aakrakshan Sangarsh Samiti, told PTI after the meeting.

He said that the Gujjar community members maintained that nothing short of five per cent reservation within the legal limit of 50 per cent would be acceptable to them and it is for the government to offer a workable proposal to meet that demand.

The Rajasthan ministers' panel comprised Health Minister Rajendra Rathore, Social Justice Minister Arun Chaturvedi and Food Minister Hem Singh Bhadana.

Rathore said that the meeting took place in a cordial atmosphere.

The first round of talks between a Gujjar delegation, which also included Kirori Singh Bainsla, and the committee of ministers was held on Saturday in Bharatpur district's Bayana town. The discussions had ended in a deadlock.

After the government invited the Gujjar leaders for talks to Jaipur, the latter initially refused the offer before later agreeing to travel to the Rajasthan state capital.

Earlier in the day, despite a consensus among the Gujjar community, Bainsla was adamant that the committee of ministers be called to Bayana for the next round of talks. He had also handed over a letter to the district administration but later changed his stand and decided to send the delegation to Jaipur.

The Delhi-Mumbai railway line in Bharatpur, the Agra- Jaipur national highway in Dausa and a state highway in Sawaimadhopur continue to be blocked by agitators.

On the other hand, the situation was tense in Sikandara area in Dausa district where a large number of agitators gathered last night to once again block the Agra-Jaipur national highway.

"Some of the agitators created a nuisance at the market and got into altercations with locals and roadside vendors. They also burnt tyres and other objects on the highway," police said.

The Gujjars had begun their agitation on Thursday last week.