The administration snapped the internet services in Rajouri-Poonch range on Wednesday to scuttle any possibility of protests and mobilisation within the community through social media. The officials didn’t allow former J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah to address the party gathering in Sunderbani area of Rajouri, which he later addressed over the phone.
“We have supported ST status for Paharis but rights of Gujjars should not be snatched and their quota should not be impacted… But the BJP and the bill is silent about these concerns,” said Abdullah, adding, “Administration here and government in Delhi, should take Gujjar community into confidence on how they will secure the rights and quota.”
J&K Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha termed it as a “historic day,” reiterating that the decision will have no impact on the current level of reservations available to Gujjar, Bakerwal and other tribes. However, the members of the GB community, which is the third largest group in J&K after Kashmiris and Dogras with around 2 million population here, termed it as a “historic blunder” which will have far reaching consequences across the country. “This is a black day for the community and murder of the Constitution and murder of the idea of reservation,” said Guftar Choudhary, a Gujjar-Bakerwal activist.
For the past several months, the GB community organised several protests across J&K to press the government for not passing this amendment in favour of Paharis and others. However, they failed to prevail.
“This decision has failed the idea of social justice and social equality. This is a political move as now almost the whole Jammu division falls under the ST category,” said Muzaffar Choudhary, another tribal activist.
(You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel)
