Jat reservation a non-issue

Deepender Deswal

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Tribune News Service

Hisar, October 16

The demand of Jats, the single largest chunk of voters in terms of caste, for granting them OBC status for benefit of quota in admission to educational institutes and government jobs, has turned out to be a non-issue in the Assembly poll.

The issue got support from across the party spectrum, with certain exceptions from a section of the BJP, during and after the 2014 Assembly poll.

Bhupinder Hooda government granted 10 per cent quota by creating the Special Backward Class, including Jats, Jat Sikhs, Rors, Tyagis and Bishnois, just before the Lok Sabha poll in 2014.

Soon after, the BJP came to power at Centre and formed the government in the state. On March 17, 2015, the notification granting quota to Jats was set aside and quashed by the Supreme Court. Jats threatened to resume the stir.

The state swiftly promised to grant quota on March 26, 2015. A delegation of the All-India Jat Arakshan Sangharsh Samiti, khap leaders and state BJP leaders met PM Narendra Modi, who promised quota to the community.

After a long wait, the Jats resumed the stir in Hisar’s Mayyar village in February 2016, which turned violent, resulting in the death of 30 persons and arson, in which property worth hundreds of crores was gutted.

Under pressure, the BJP government came up with legislation to provide 10% quota to Jats and five other castes — Bishnois, Rors, Tyagis, Mulla and Muslim Jats and Jat Sikhs — in March 2016.

The Assembly passed two Bills, but the High Court stayed their implementation. These were challenged in the SC and were pending.

Yashpal Malik, Jat samiti chief, said they had decided to remain silent on the demand for quota as the issue could be politicised for vested interests. He said leaders of all parties supported quota for Jats, but were more interested in political mileage from it.

Another Jat leader Hawa Singh Sangwan said: “I’ll soon file a writ petition in court, seeking quota for Jats.”