Latest news with #Gujjars
Indian Express
3 days ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
‘Zero demands met': In Rajasthan, Gujjars turn heat on BJP govt, clear decks for new stir
Accusing the Bhajan Lal Sharma-led BJP government in Rajasthan of not addressing any of their long-pending demands even after completing 17 months at the helm, a section of Gujjar leaders have called a Mahapanchayat on June 8 in Bharatpur's Pilupura village close to the railway tracks. The Gurjar Arakshan Sangharsh Samiti's president Vijay Bainsla said they were forced to call a Mahapanchayat as the Sharma government has done 'zero' works for the Gujjar community. A BJP leader, Vijay — son of the architect of the Gujjar reservation agitation, late Colonel Kirori Singh Bainsla — contested the 2023 Assembly elections from Tonk's Deoli Uniara seat on the party's ticket, but lost to the Congress's candidate. On May 23, Vijay proposed the Mahapanchayat from Shaheed Sthal in Pilupura — the nerve centre of the agitation in 2008 where the police had fired on Gujjar protesters, killing several people. 'We have been talking continuously with the government for the last 17 months but things haven't been moving. So the community leaders said we need to hold a Mahapanchayat,' Vijay said. The Gujjar leaders have now been holding several small and big gatherings to mobilise the community for the Mahapanchayat, with peele chawal (yellow rice) being sent to many households for invitation. One of the main grievances of the protesters is related to the roster system of reservation. Currently, Rajasthan has 64% reservation: 21% for OBCs (Other Backward Classes), 16% for SCs (Scheduled Castes), 12% for STs (Scheduled Tribes), 10% for Economically Weaker Sections (EWS), and 5% for MBCs (Most Backward Classes). Gujjars were included in the MBC category during the tenure of the previous Ashok Gehlot-led Congress government. However, the Gurjar Arakshan Sangharsh Samiti alleges that Gujjars and other MBC communities have not been getting full benefits of reservation as the current roster system 'reduces' the reserved posts at the local level. Vijay says that the roster system to allot reservation at various levels has led to its 'fragmentation'. 'For example, we are supposed to get 5 posts for every 100 vacancies, or 1 in 20. But the government divides these 100 posts in multiple verticals, including tehsils, districts, departments. So, when the posts are reduced to say, 18, in a vertical, MBCs are left out. Roster system is a way of not giving reservation,' he said, alleging that SCs, STs, OBCs, and EWS were also affected by it. Vijay said the state government in 2019 had submitted before the high court that the MBC candidates are considered first in the general category, then among the OBCs, and then the MBC category, but it has not been implemented yet. He demanded that the proportionate jobs of the last 6 years should be thus given to MBCs. 'They (government) should implement it or issue a corrigendum if they think this was incorrect,' he said. The Samiti has demanded that the backlog for MBCs in Rajasthan Judicial Services should be filled too. The Gujjar protesters have also renewed the demand for inclusion of the 5% MBC reservation in the Ninth Schedule to grant it immunity from a judicial review. The state government had passed the MBC quota law in 2019, but it has not been included in the Ninth Schedule. Gujjars have also been pressing for long for withdrawal of cases against many of their community protesters, which had been lodged against them during several quota agitations over the years. Vijay alleged that not a single case has been withdrawn yet under the current government. In a letter to CM Sharma, he said the government's decision to not withdraw 74 cases (see box) is against the spirit of written agreements signed between the community and the governments over the years. On the other hand, he alleged, the orders for confiscation of land of some of the accused have been issued. He demanded that 'the families of the martyrs of the reservation agitation should get jobs on compassionate grounds, apart from compensation.' Another point of contention is pertaining to the implementation of Devnarayan schemes for the welfare of Gujjar students. Vijay alleged that there has been poor implementation of these schemes for 17 months, adding that neither enough scholarships nor scooties have been provided to eligible students. In the financial year 2024, not a single scooty was provided despite a budget provision of over 20 crores under Devnarayan Chhatra Scooty Yojana, he said. Similarly in 2024-25, only Rs 19 lakh was spent under this head against a budget provision of Rs 50 crore; for this financial year, over a quarter of the budget for Devnarayan schemes lapsed. Vijay said the monthly review meeting of the Devnarayan Board and the government has not taken place for 17 months, demanding its resumption. 'What happens now is what the CM (Bhajan Lal Sharma) wants. If he wants to resolve the issues, they will be resolved. If he wants us to sit on the tracks, so be it. The ball is in his court,' Vijay said. Significantly, Jats of the region have also extended their support to the Gujjars' proposed stir. On Thursday, Jat leader Nem Singh Faujdar, who has been leading a campaign for inclusion of Jats of Bharatpur and Dholpur in the Central OBC list, announced his support to the June 8 Mahapanchayat. Rajasthan Minister of State for Home, Jawahar Singh Bedam, who belongs to the Gujjar community, told The Indian Express: 'Since Vijay Bainsla ji is a BJP leader and there is BJP government, he should meet the CM once and keep his points across; the CM is sensitive. If the talks progress in a positive manner, then certainly the issues can be resolved in a time-bound and lawful manner.' Bedam also said, 'I am myself involved in this and we want all the issues to be resolved in a time- bound manner. I am continuously in touch with officials. Our government is accountable to the people. Whatever the issues are, we will try to resolve them positively by sitting together.' Total cases: 794 Chargesheeted: 373 · Of which withdrawn: 241 · Not withdrawn: 74 · Decided: 46 · Pending in courts: 12 Final reports before courts: 390 · Of which accepted: 361 · Pending in courts: 26 · Returned by courts: 03 Under investigation: 31
Hindustan Times
5 days ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
HC rejects plea to form army Gujjar regiment
The Delhi high court on Wednesday took a dim view of a petition demanding the Centre to have an exclusive army regiment for Gujjars, terming such a move as 'divisive'. With the court declaring its intent to dismiss the petition with costs, the petitioner chose to withdraw the plea. The petition filed by Rohan Basoya referred to the tradition in the army to have units such as the Jat Regiment, Sikh Regiment, and Gorkha Regiment and demanded the Union government create a similar arrangement for the Gujjar community as well. 'It's absolutely divisive,' said a bench of chief justice DK Upadhyay and justice Tushar Rao Gedela finding no reason to entertain the petition. 'Which law vests a right to have such a regiment having people of a particular community? Where is that right? There has to be an infringement of the right.' Finding no response forthcoming, the court warned of dismissing the petition with heavy costs. Basoya chose to withdraw the plea. 'Heard the counsel for the petitioner. After arguing at some length, the counsel for the petitioner says that she has instructions from the petitioner to withdraw the writ. Accordingly, the petition is dismissed as withdrawn,' the order said. In his petition, Basoya, an advocate, asserted that the community despite having a rich martial legacy by way of its participation in various wars including 1857 revolt, Indo-Pak wars of 1947, 1965, 1971, Kargil war (1999) and counter insurgency operations in Jammu and Kashmir, had not been accorded a dedicated regiment, unlike other communities such as Sikhs, Jats, Rajputs, Gorkhas, and Dogras. 'Despite this rich martial legacy, they (Gujjars) have not been accorded a dedicated regiment, unlike other martial communities such as Sikhs, Jats, Rajputs, Gorkhas, and Dogras,' the petition stated. To be sure, all the examples cited by the petitioner refer to regiments that were formed and christened after communities in the 19th century by the British. The petitioner's argument was that ' the exclusion of Gujjars from the regimental system, violates Articles 14 and 16, contradicts Indian army precedents and denies rightful recognition of their military contributions.'
Time of India
5 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Delhi HC rejects 'divisive' PIL to create Gujjar Army regiment
Delhi high court NEW DELHI: Delhi high court on Wednesday rejected a PIL seeking a direction to the Union government to constitute a Gujjar regiment in Indian Army , and warned the petitioner that cost would be imposed for filing a 'divisive' petition. "There has to be a right vested in you either by any statute or any law or the Constitution. Which is the law that gives you the right to have such a regiment? Where is that right?" asked a division bench comprising chief justice D K Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela. The petitioner, Rohan Basoya, argued that despite a rich martial legacy, Gujjars have not been accorded a dedicated regiment, unlike other martial communities such as Sikhs, Jats, Rajputs, Gorkhas, and Dogras. He submitted that the absence of a Gujjar regiment violates their constitutional rights. "The demand for a Gujjar regiment has been raised before, but no concrete steps have been taken by the govt. Given the community's presence in border regions like Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, and Punjab, a Gujjar regiment would also serve strategic military interests in counterinsurgency and border security operations," the plea said.
The Hindu
6 days ago
- Politics
- The Hindu
Delhi High Court declines to entertain plea for Gujjar Regiment in Army
The Delhi High Court on Wednesday (May 28, 2025) declined to entertain a public interest litigation (PIL) petition seeking a direction to the Centre for the creation of a Gujjar Regiment in the Army. Terming the PIL 'absolutely divisive', a Bench of Chief Justice D.K. Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela asked the counsel for the petitioner to do some research before taking up such petitions. With the court cautioning the litigant of imposing costs, the counsel chose to withdraw the plea. 'After arguing at some length, the counsel for the petitioner states that she has instructions from the petitioner, who is present in the court, to withdraw the petition. The same is dismissed as withdrawn,' the court said. During the hearing, the Bench questioned the petitioner's counsel which provision of the Constitution, statute, or customary law conferred the right to form a regiment based on a particular community. The PIL was filed by Rohan Basoya, claiming that the Gujjar community has a well-documented history of bravery, having participated in various wars, including the 1857 revolt, Indo-Pak wars of 1947, 1965, 1971, Kargil war (1999) and counter-insurgency operations in Jammu and Kashmir. 'Despite this rich martial legacy, they [Gujjars] have not been accorded a dedicated regiment, unlike other martial communities such as Sikhs, Jats, Rajputs, Gorkhas, and Dogras,' the plea said. It added that the Indian Army has historically maintained ethnic-based regiments, recognising the contributions of specific communities to national defence. However, the exclusion of Gujjars from the system creates an imbalance in representation and violates their constitutional rights under Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution, the petition said. 'The demand for a Gujjar Regiment has been raised before, yet no concrete steps have been taken by the government. Given the community's presence in border regions such as Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, and Punjab, a Gujjar Regiment would also serve strategic military interests in counter-insurgency and border security operations,' the PIL plea said.
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Business Standard
6 days ago
- Politics
- Business Standard
Delhi HC refuses to entertain plea to form Gujjar regiment in Indian Army
The Delhi High Court on Wednesday refused to entertain a public interest litigation seeking direction to the Centre for the formation of a Gujjar regiment in the Indian Army. A bench of Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela termed the PIL to be "absolutely divisive" and asked the counsel for the petitioner to do some research before taking up such petitions. Sensing the court's mood which warned of imposing costs on the litigant, the petitioner's counsel withdrew the plea. "After arguing at some length, the counsel for the petitioner states that she has instructions from the petitioner who is present in the court to withdraw the petition. The same is dismissed as withdrawn, the bench said. The court was hearing a PIL by one Rohan Basoya, claiming that the Gujjar community has a well-documented history of bravery, having participated in various wars, including the 1857 revolt, Indo-Pak wars of 1947, 1965, 1971, Kargil war (1999) and counter insurgency operations in Jammu and Kashmir. "Despite this rich martial legacy, they (Gujjars) have not been accorded a dedicated regiment, unlike other martial communities such as Sikhs, Jats, Rajputs, Gorkhas, and Dogras," the plea said. It added that the Indian Army has historically maintained ethnic-based regiments, recognising the contributions of specific communities to national defence. However, the exclusion of Gujjars from the system creates an imbalance in representation and violates their constitutional rights under Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution, the petition submitted. The plea submitted that establishment of a Gujjar regiment would provide equal opportunities, increase recruitment, and would strengthen national security. The demand for a Gujjar Regiment has been raised before, yet no concrete steps have been taken by the government. Given the community's presence in border regions like Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, and Punjab, a Gujjar Regiment would also serve strategic military interests in counter-insurgency and border security operations, it said. The plea sought to direct the government to conduct a study on the feasibility of forming a Gujjar regiment and to implement necessary measures for its establishment. During the hearing, the bench orally said, "Please understand that you are seeking a mandamus. What is the prerequisite for mandamus? There has to be a right vested in you either by any statute or any law or the Constitution. Which is the law which gives you a right to have such a regiment? Where is that right?" It asked the petitioner's counsel which provision of the Constitution or any other enactment or customary law gives the right to have a regiment of persons of a particular community. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
