Haryana Jat Protests Spread, 10 Die In Violence, Airfare Shoots Up
ROHTAK: Ten people died and 150 were injured in Haryana as protesters demanding reservation for the Jat community continued their agitation for the eighth day today. Protesters are expected to meet home minister Rajnath Singh. Airfare to Punjab and Rajasthan, meanwhile, shot up as blockades hit road and rail transport.
Six more people have died in today’s violence, taking the number of deaths to 10. A station ticket counter was burnt in Gurgaon despite curfew and Army presence. In Bhiwani, an ATM machine was also set ablaze.
As the protests spread wider, the agitating Jats blocked the Shimla highway near Panchkula. Delhi too, witnessed another blockade as protesters sat down on the Bahadurgarh road to Haryana.
The blockade of the National Highway 1, which connects Delhi with Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir, which started yesterday, continues.
Curfew continues in several towns and districts of Haryana including Rohtak, Bhiwani, Sonepat, Jhajjar, Hisar and Hansi today. Prohibitory orders have also been imposed in Gurgaon near Delhi for two days.
With road and rail network remaining severely affected, airfare between Chandigarh and Delhi, which normally varies between Rs. 3,000 and Rs. 4,000, has shot up to anything between Rs. 16,000 and Rs. 27,000. Jaipur-Delhi fare stands between Rs. 9,000 and Rs. 24,000.
At least 700 trains have been cancelled and seven stations have been set on fire since the agitation started.
Delhi is witnessing a massive water crisis due to the blockade. As the Delhi government shut schools and colleges in view of the crisis, the Centre asked the Haryana government to ensure that Delhi’s water supply is not affected.
An additional 1,700 paramilitary troops have been sent to Haryana, taking the total number of central armed police personnel deployed in the troubled state to 5,000.
The protesters have refused to call off their agitation till an ordinance is brought to meet their demands. The BJP said it is “committed” to give OBC or Other Backward Caste status to Jats. “But the government cannot talk with a mob,” said minister Anil Vij.
The violence had started on Friday, as protesters set fire to buses, cars, a mall, a petrol pump and the house of the state finance minister Captain Abhimanyu in Rohtak.
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Source:Ndtv
