Hisar, March 24
Even as Jats continue to back the ongoing pro-reservation agitation strongly, the stir is creating a vertical split in society with the Jats on one side and non-Jat communities on the other.

However, unmindful of the implications, the Jat community is supporting the protesters fully. How strongly the community believes in its cause is evident from the fact that a group of Jat lawyers met the protesters at Ramayan village near here today and asked them not to lift the rail track blockade even if the higher courts order the government to clear the tracks. They donated Rs 40,000 to the protesters and assured them that they would contest their cases free of cost should a situation arise.

This particular group is not alone. Scores of community members visit the site of the rail track blockade every day. The protesters claim that they have received cash donations of Rs 14 lakh so far.

Throughout the day today, crowds continued to swell at the rail track as rumours of an impending police swoop kept floating. The number of protesters swelled to around 4,000 after these rumours got circulating.

Meanwhile, in the countryside, the reservation issue is being debated hotly. What emerges from these debates is that whatever the outcome of the agitation, it will polarise society.

While the Jats want reservation on the premise that they have been pushed back socially and economically by falling income from agriculture, the non-Jats, on the other hand, view the demand as an extension of caste-based politics.

Hawa Singh of Kharar village feels that the Jats in Haryana have been denied the benefit that their community members enjoy in Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi. “We are primarily peasants everywhere in these states. How can a Jat be backward in Delhi, UP and Rajasthan and not in Haryana when their economic status is by and large the same?” he argued.

Sohan Lal, a non-Jat from the same village, however, countered the argument. “The Jats in Rajasthan have been dominated for ages by Rajputs, rendering them socially and economically backward. As against this, the Jats in Haryana have been a dominant caste always because of their numbers. So, there is no similarity between the Jats of Haryana and Rajasthan”, he said, adding that political upstarts were only trying to find foothold in politics on this issue.

The Jats claim that the falling incomes from agriculture have left them educationally backward. Mohinder Malik, who has been actively canvassing support for the stir, said, “Most Jats owe around two acres of land. The income is so low that we cannot send our children to good schools and colleges. We not only need reservation in jobs but also in educational institutions.”

However, non-Jats rubbish this claim. Ram Bilas hailing from Balak village said the economic condition of all rural communities was identical. “The Brahmins are no better off. They also cannot afford good education for their children. By this logic, they should also get the benefit of reservation”, he said. He, too, views the stir as an extension of caste-based politics.

Another votary of reservation for Jats, Puran Singh of Bhatla, said the Mandal Commission had identified Ahirs, Gujjars, Sainis, Lohars, Kumhars, Sunars, Khatis and Kambojs, on the basis of social and educational backwardness, as deserving to be included in the list of OBCs in Haryana. “Since then, the economic backwardness of the Jats has worsened as the government neglected agriculture. So, there is a need for uplifting them now”, he said.

But this view is not shared by the non-Jats. There is a growing feeling among them that the Jats are only exploiting their numerical strength. A non-Jat Professor, who recently retired from Haryana Agricultural University, said “Though no official figures are available, but you visit any government office today and you will find that an overwhelming majority of them are Jats.

Since 1966, Jat Chief Ministers have ruled for 30 of the 45 years. All of them consolidated their hold over the community by recruiting as many Jats in government jobs as possible. Where is the justification for the reservation? Let there be reservation on economic basis for all the deserving people of all castes. This stir is nothing but politics”, he said.

He also dismisses the Jat plea that poor educational facilities in rural areas have made them educationally backward. He said the children of other communities faced the same difficulty. But those who worked hard overcame the hurdles and marched on. What prevented the Jats from doing the same, he said.

As the intensity of the debate increases, the chasm between the Jats and non-Jats widens in the same proportion. This will have wider political repercussions in the future.

Chandigarh, March 24
By holding the state to ransom for the past 20 days, the Jats have harmed their own political interests in Haryana, where they have been reigning supreme for the past many decades.

They have even harmed their established leaders, whether in the ruling Congress or in the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD). Members of other communities have not liked their “Dabangg” attitude and have started consolidating against them. Though they are still shy of being openly pitted against the dominant community, they have already started looking for political alternatives.

The fear of alienating the Jats, who constitute over 22 per cent of the state’s population and vote strategically, have forced the established community leaders to turn a blind eye to the open defiance of law of the land by them.

The Congress is taking solace by saying that the agitators are demanding reservation in the Central services under the OBC category. The INLD, which knows that its claim on the non-Jat votes in the state is tenuous, has extended support to the Jat reservation demand. But at the same time it has advocated reservation for the economically weaker sections of other castes also. Obviously, the party does not want to erode whatever support it has among members of the non-Jat communities.

The justification of the Jat demand is as varied as the political affiliations of the leaders. Sampat Singh of the Congress says that since Jat students hailing from rural areas cannot compete with students of metropolitan cities, they should be given reservation. Why not the same concession to students of other communities living in villages? No answer.

Om Prakash Chautala says that since the Jats have been given reservation in Rajasthan, why not in Haryana? No one realises that the situation in the two states cannot be compared. In Rajasthan, the Rajputs dominate while the Jats are socially backward, whereas in Haryana the Jats are the dominant community.

So far the government has allowed the situation to drift. The 20-day-old blockade of rail tracks has led to a shortage of essential commodities, including coal for thermal plants. Labourers, who commute daily from Rajasthan to neighbouring districts of Haryana, are facing a lot of problems, says former MLA Naresh Yadav.

It seems the Jats have taken a lesson from the Rajasthan Gujjars in blocking rail tracks. When the tracks were blocked by the Gujjars in Rajasthan, the state government did not evict them forcefully, whether the BJP was in power or the Congress was ruling the state.

The same strategy of “wait and watch” is being followed by the Haryana Government. The state informed the Punjab and Haryana High Court today that any stern action against the agitators would lead to large-scale violence. It is another matter that the court has directed leaders of the agitators not to block rail tracks. President of the Haryana Vanchit Varg Sangharsh Samiti Roshan Lal Arya has welcomed the court orders and has hoped that saner counsel will prevail.

During the tenure of Bhajan Lal, Bansi Lal and Chautala as Chief Minister of the state, there had been police firing on agitating farmers (read Jats). Perhaps Bhupinder Singh Hooda does not want to join the company of his predecessors. This seems to be the reason for the “kid glove” approach adopted by the government towards the agitators holding the state, nay the nation, to ransom.

Karnal, March 24
Unmindful of the directions of the Punjab and Haryana High Court to the Haryana Government to get railway tracks cleared from Jat agitators, the Akhil Bharatiya Jat Mahasabha today decided to further intensify the struggle and block more railway tracks and highways.

At a meeting at the Jat Dharamshala here today, the mahasabha urged the government to accept their demand without any further delay.

“We will intensify the agitation and block the Delhi-Chandigarh railway track at Siwas in Panipat from 10 am on March 28 and in case the government does not buzz, the National Highway No. 1 (GT Road) and other highways will also be blocked,” Tara Chand More, a spokesman for the mahasabha said. Cautioning the police and the administration not to provoke the agitators, More said, “Our agitation is completely peaceful and we are exercising our right to protest in a democratic setr-up and will continue the stir till our demand is accepted.”

Mehuwala (Fatehabad), March 24
A day-long drama over the cremation of the body of Vijay Singh Karwasra, a Jat agitator, who died while sitting on dharna on railway tracks here yesterday, ended this evening.

The protesters, who had announced that they would not cremate the body till their demands were met, relented after Deputy Commissioner Vijay Singh Dahiya and the SP Vivek Sharma visited them in the evening and assured them of sympathetic consideration of their demands.

As the officers were negotiating with the agitators, Haryana minister Randeep Singh Surjewala and Chief Parliamentary Secretary Prahlad Singh Gillankhera were sitting in the PWD Rest House at Bhattu Kalan and keeping a close watch on the developments.

The agitators had demanded the status of a martyr for Karwasra, a piece of land for building a memorial top him, compensation and a government job for next of kin of the deceased.

Earlier, activists of the Jat Aarakshan Sangharsh Samiti placed Karwasra’s body on the track in the morning to bargain for their demands.

Yashpal Malik, national president, Hawa Singh Sangwan, state president, Suba Singh Dhaka, national general secretary, Laxmi Narain Dehru, state general secretary and several other senior leaders of the Jat Aarakshan Sangharsh Samiti reached the village in the afternoon and held a meeting with the family members of the victim.

They later informed the authorities about their demands, after which the DC and the SP came to the railway track to receive their memorandum.

As the victim’s kin were trying to take away the body to their house, another group of Jat activists arrived from Hisar district and placed the body again on the track.

The kin of the victim as well as leaders of the samiti struck to their words given to the authorities and announced to cremate the body in the evening.

Meanwhile, police presence has increased in Bhattu Kalan and Tohana, the two towns falling near Mehuwala and Gajuwala, respectively, where the Jats are sitting on a railway track.

Reports from Gajuwala said villagers have collected “lathis” at the dharna site to resist a possible police action after today’s orders of the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

Later, talking to mediapersons, Yashpal Malik said the agitation for the grant of the OBC status to the Jats and dharna on railway tracks would continue as usual.

When his attention was drawn to the orders of the High Court regarding clearing of railway tracks, he said he was not aware of any such orders.

Rohtak, March 24
Doctors at the emergency ward of the PGIMS hospital here suspended work for about an hour today following a scuffle with kin of two patients, who were brought to the hospital in a critical condition. However, the work resumed after the intervention of the authorities concerned.

The incident took place when two injured persons identified as Surender (22) and Joginder (24), both siblings, were shifted to the emergency ward of the hospital. The duo had received bullet injuries.

The doctors declared Surender brought dead, following which the kin allegedly manhandled the doctors and the staff accusing them of being slow and wasting time in other formalities.

The incident led to a ruckus and resulted in disruption of the medical services in the ward for an hour. Though the authorities tried to pacify the staff and the attendants, the doctors lodged a police complaint.

The Vice-Chancellor of the health university, Dr SS Sangwan, said some persons had manhandled the doctors on duty, following which the staff held protest.

The police said Surender and Joginder from Pakasma village were injured in a firing incident here today. Some persons opened fire at them over a land dispute.

The police has registered a case against six persons, but no arrest has been made so far.

Rohtak, March 24
Tuberculosis (TB) continues to hound the state despite all progress made in the medical sector over the years. The state Health Department detected as many as 14,000 new cases in 2010.

The Health Department took out a rally to mark World TB Day here today and a programme on TB was also held at Pt BD Sharma Health University here.

Speaking at the occasion, the experts revealed that the number of patients this year was quite high as compared to last year. All new patients had been put on the DOTS treatment and there was no cause to panic as the mortality rate of such patients had come down considerably over the years.

While about 10 per cent of the new patients detected last year had been provided treatment at the PGIMS hospital here, the rest had been given treatment facilities at various government-run hospitals and health centres.

Doctors said TB was neither a hereditary nor it was a disease that could not be cured. They said treatment was available easily and medicines were given free of cost in a majority of cases.

According to the district TB officer, there were about 180 DOTS centres operating in the district, out of which 10 were being run by the district TB hospital. He said TB was a contagious disease and like the common cold, it spreads through the air.

According to the experts, if left untreated, each person with active TB disease can infect between 10 and 15 persons on an average every year. It claims lives of two persons every three minutes in the country.

Kaithal, March 24
Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda today announced to set up a polytechnic and an indoor stadium in Kaithal and a milk plant at Ujhana village, 5 km from here.

He added that Rs 5 crore would be made available before March 31 and an equal amount in the next financial year to speed up development works in Kaithal.

The Chief Minister was the chief guest at the Gaurav Diwas function organised to mark the 80th birthday of Shamsher Singh Surjewala, president of the Akhil Bharatiya Kisan Khet Mazdoor Congress, here today.

Hooda said welfare policies had been formulated and implemented for every section of society.

Hooda said the Congress government had spent a sum of Rs 2,374 crore on the development of Kaithal since 2005. He added that a compensation of Rs 29 crore was given to people of Kaithal for the damaged caused by the floods.

Describing Shamsher Singh Surjewala as a Comrade, the Chief Minister said he had always made efforts for the welfare of farmers and common people.

Surjewala said the state government should make a provision that on the day of marriage, immovable property should be transferred to the woman to ensure their empowerment. He also suggested that committees of Congressmen should be constituted for effective implementation of welfare schemes of the state government.

Randeep Singh Surjewala, Public Works (Building & Roads) Minister and MLA from Kaithal, said the state had made phenomenal development within a short period.

He said although there used to be five MLAs from the area of Kaithal during the INLD rule, no development was undertaken in the district.

Hooda said over Rs 14,43 crore had been earmarked for the promotion of health services and medical education in 2011-12.

The Chief Minister said this after inaugurating Indira Gandhi multi-speciality hospital constructed at a cost of over Rs 16.50 crore here today.

Karnal, March 24
An Assamese girl, who was brought here by some agents on the pretext of a job and was later sold to a family in Karnal through a placement agency in Delhi, reunited with her family with the efforts of NGO Pravasi Suraksha Vahini.

The hapless girl from Biapokheri village in Udangarhi district of Assam, lodged in MDD Bal Bhawan for the past eight months, burst into tears when she saw her mother Rukmani and brother.

The girl was found abandoned in Sector 8 on August 15, 2010, and was taken to MDD Bal Bhawan by some women. However, due to language problem, she could not narrate her tale of woes. She only said she was brought to Guwhati from her native village by agent Lili. Later, she was taken to Delhi and handed over to a placement agency in Punjabi Bagh, which sent her to a house in Karnal.

She was subjected to torture and oppression by the family. She somehow managed to escape and was later brought to MDD Bal Bhawan. Her family and relatives were traced with the efforts of an NGO and Bal Bhawan officials. Her mother Rukmani and brother Rajesh immediately rushed to Karnal to take her back home.

President of the NGO Raj Singh Chaudhry said it was not an isolated case and it was a common practice to exploit poor and innocent girls from distant places.

Faridabad, March 24
The INLD held a protest against the recent increase in the circle (collectorate) rate of land in Faridabad district today.

It also submitted a memorandum to the Governor of Haryana vide the office of the Deputy Commissioner, Faridabad, and demanded immediate revocation of the district administration’s decision to increase the circle rate. The party threatened to intensify the agitation if the decision was not withdrawn.

Sonepat, March 24
Former Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court Mukul Mudgal on Thursday urged the students of Hindu Girls’ College to play a greater role in strengthening of social bonds and in removing social evils from the society.

Addressing the annual prize distribution function of the college, Mudgal said the government was taking all measures for empowering women. Besides 15 roll of honours, 243 prizes were given to students who excelled in academics and extra-curricular activities.

Sirsa, March 24
Yesterday’s incident of suicide by a Dera Sacha Sauda follower, Vinod Narula, has raised several questions on the security arrangements by the police. Narula (28) had allegedly committed suicide by shooting himself in the temple outside the courts a few minutes after dera chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh left the court premises after his appearance before the CBI court through videoconferencing here last evening.

The suicide note, which was recovered from the car, said he was taking the extreme step as he was upset at the hearing of cases against the “Guruji” on a daily basis.

The question being asked is that how Vinod, an ordinary shopkeeper, was allowed to take a revolver with him in the highly cordon off area, where the entry of everyone, including mediapersons, is barred during the dera chief’s hearing.

The place where Narula shot himself is less than 20 feet away from the entry gate of the courts complex. All judges of the district courts have to make their entry and exit from this gate and the police is expected to keep a tight security at this point.

Meanwhile, Narula was cremated here today. A large number of dera followers attended the cremation. Terming him as “martyr”, they also raised slogans.