Saini stopped from entering Rohtak village; clash averted

Sunit Dhawan

Tribune News Service

Mokhra (Rohtak), June 11

A possible clash between the supporters of BJP MP Raj Kumar Saini and members of the All-India Jat Aarakshan Sangharsh Samiti (AIJASS) was averted with the local police-administration stopping the MP from entering the village for a public meeting.

Rohtak SP Jashandeep Singh Randhawa said two organisations, Loktantra Suraksha Manch and AIJASS, had planned to organise parallel programmes at Mokhra village on Monday.

“Both were denied permission to hold their events in order to maintain law and order and prevent any untoward situation or clash. However, BJP MP Saini still tried to enter the village, but was stopped,” he said.

Some residents of the village were reportedly detained as a preventive measure.

On being stopped from entering Mokhra, Saini staged a dharna at the border of the village and demanded to meet his supporters and organisers of the event. His supporters went to meet him at the dharna site.

In the meanwhile, the samiti members and other villagers opposing Saini’s visit also assembled near the dharna venue and started raising slogans against him.

Talking to reporters on the occasion, the BJP MP stated that democracy had been murdered and the local police-administration, who could not control those indulging in ‘dadagiri’, had built pressure to control an MP of the ruling party.

Later, addressing a public gathering at Kalanaur town, Saini remarked that a Taliban-like situation prevailed in the state where members of one community were suppressing the voices of the other.

He said the last five Chief Ministers in the state had indulged in nepotism and discriminated against the members of Backward Classes and those belonging to general categories barring a specific caste.

Govt using Saini to create tension: Malik

AIJASS president Yashpal Malik, who was in Rohtak on Monday for a state executive meeting of the samiti, alleged that the BJP government was using MP Raj Kumar Saini to create communal tension in the state. "The government could have asked him to not go where he is not welcome. But, they want to create communal tension in the state for their vested political interests," said Malik at Jassia village in the district. He said the samiti would hold 'bhaichara sammelans' in state villages from July 28 to August 12 and garner support of the Dalit community and start staging protest demonstrations against public meetings of the Chief Minister and his Cabinet colleagues from August 16.